Sweet Honey in the Rock was founded in 1973 by Bernice Johnson Reagon who formed the group out of the strongest singers from a vocal workshop she was teaching with the D.C. Black Repertory Company. The name of the group comes from a religious parable that tells of a land so rich that when rocks were cracked open, honey flowed from them.
The music of Sweet Honey in the Rock challenges its listeners with songs on topics including motherhood, spirituality, freedom, civil liberties, domestic violence, and racism.
Over the years, more than twenty individuals have lent their voices to Sweet Honey in the Rock. Beginning as a quartet, Sweet Honey in the Rock is now comprised of six African American women (including a professional American Sign Language interpreter who accompanies the group on concert tours). The ensemble tackles difficult five-part harmonies and composes much of their own music.
Sweet Honey in the Rock has received several Grammy Award nominations, including one for their children's album Still the Same Me which received the Silver Award from the National Association of Parenting Publications. They won a Grammy in 1989 in the category of Best Traditional Folk Recording for their version of Leadbelly's "Grey Goose" from the compilation album Folkways: A Vision Shared.
Ballad of the Broken Word
Sweet Honey In The Rock Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Two hundred years of exploitation
In the capital of this nation
No representation in the capital of this nation
Two hundred years of exploitation
Give the people their right to vote
The voting rights of the district were long overdue?
They couldn't believe it when I said a yes
And then I said, "A, you ain't heard nothing yet"
We are based in Washington DC
A truly diverse community
Almost six hundred thousand strong
Have been exploited much too long
Inadequate power over our own affairs
And national issues for which we care
No votes in Congress, the Senate, the House
No state delegation, no representation
We pledge allegiance, Army country 'tis of thee
Fight in wars, pay taxes in this country
Provide work and services for the government
We get no vote but our money is spent
You may wonder, how in the world can this be?
I thought we lived in a democracy
The US constitution gives equal protection
Check the 14th amendment to make this connection
No taxation without representation
Two hundred years of exploitation
In the capital of this nation
No representation in the capital of this nation
Two hundred years of exploitation
Give the people their right to vote
In 1787 the US constitution was ratified
US Congress won the power to exclusively exercise
In all cases, legislation
Over the future capital of this nation
In 1790, selection of the district site began
Using a piece of Virginia and a piece of Maryland
Forming the district of Columbia, or Washington DC
But the people kept on voting in their former states, you see
In 1800, Congress took control of DC
Ended representation for the whole community
In the history of this country you'll find the reason why
And even in a new millennium, they want this law to apply
In 1846, the portion of DC
From Virginia decided to retrocede
It was returned to the original state line
Alexandria and Arlington came after this time
In 1871, an elected delegate with no vote
Was created for the House of Representatives, no joke
DC was given territorial government that year
Representation remained an issue, do you hear?
In 1874, financial troubles arise
The position of nonvoting delegate meets its demise
The territorial government that was given to DC
Was taken back by Congress at this point of history
In 1970, the House brings the position back
Years of civil rights activism brought pressure with no slack
A step in the right direction brought the people so much joy
And the man in this position, was Walter Faunteroy
In 1978, Congress finally said okay
To the DC Voting Rights Act, but not right away
If approved within seven years with no hesitation
DC would be granted full representation
In 1985, our hopes were really, really high
We knew that they should not let this bill die
All we needed was approval of thirty eight states
But only sixteen states would support our case
In 1993, the District made a giant step
Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton worked hard to get
A DC Vote on the House floor, which Congress did approve
But when Republicans came to power, the decision was overruled
No taxation without representation
Two hundred years of exploitation
In the capital of this nation
No representation in the capital of this nation
Two hundred years of exploitation
Give the people their right to vote
Now, I'm sure you are wondering what can be done?
There are at least four ways that this fight can be won
Some suggest we retrocede as a part of Maryland
Become a city or county in that state once again
Or a new law could pass with a Congressional vote
DC residents would be counted in the Maryland vote
For Federal elections, census taking without retroceding back
This would leave our residency in tact
Or, Congress could pass another law for DC
Like they did in 1800 when they took over totally
For more than five hundred reasons they treat us like a state
And adding another reason, should not a problem create
This would give us two US Senate seats
And the census would determine the number of House seats
Preferably, DC would be the 51st state
We'd have a seat in the House and two in the Senate, it's not too late
Democracy is what we want
Voting rights are what we need
Tell your Congress person, it's time to take heed
Democracy is what we want
Voting rights are what we need
Tell your Congress person, it's time to take heed
No taxation without representation
Two hundred years of exploitation
In the capital of this nation
No representation in the capital of this nation
Two hundred years of exploitation
Give the people their right to vote
The lyrics of Sweet Honey and the Rock's Ballad of the Broken Word shed light on the lack of representation and the struggle for voting rights in Washington DC. The song raises the issue of the exploitation and the lack of power that the diverse community has been subject to for over two hundred years, despite living in the capital of the United States of America. The lyrics emphasize that the community has no votes in Congress or the Senate, leading to inadequate power over their own affairs and national issues that affect them.
The lyrics then explain that the community has been fighting for representation for a long time, and there have been various attempts to achieve it, such as retroceding as a part of Maryland, becoming a city or county in that state once again, or passing a new law that would count the residents of DC in the Maryland vote. The song concludes by calling on people to push their congresspeople to take action to rectify the situation and give the community living in the capital their right to vote.
Overall, the song is a powerful call to action that aims to highlight the injustices that the DC community has faced for a long time, and their struggle to obtain representation.
Line by Line Meaning
No taxation without representation
We won't pay taxes if we don't have a say in how those taxes are spent
Two hundred years of exploitation
We have been taken advantage of for far too long
In the capital of this nation
In the very center of the country's power
No representation in the capital of this nation
We don't have a voice where decisions are being made
Give the people their right to vote
We demand our right to participate in the democratic process
Someone asked me, was it true?
This issue seems too unreal to be happening in a democracy
The voting rights of the district were long overdue?
Why have we been denied this right for so long?
They couldn't believe it when I said a yes
Our situation seems too backwards to be true
And then I said, "A, you ain't heard nothing yet"
Our struggle for representation has been a long and ongoing one
We are based in Washington DC
We live in the nation's capital
A truly diverse community
Our community is rich in diversity
Almost six hundred thousand strong
We are almost 600,000 residents strong
Have been exploited much too long
Our lack of representation has caused us to be taken advantage of
Inadequate power over our own affairs
We don't have the ability to govern ourselves
And national issues for which we care
We care about the issues that matter to the nation as a whole
No votes in Congress, the Senate, the House
We have no representation in any level of government
No state delegation, no representation
We don't have any representatives in the national government
We pledge allegiance, Army country 'tis of thee
We are loyal citizens of the United States
Fight in wars, pay taxes in this country
We serve our country and contribute to it like any other American
Provide work and services for the government
We work for the government and help run the country
We get no vote but our money is spent
Our tax money is being spent without our input
You may wonder, how in the world can this be?
Our situation is hard to believe in a democracy
I thought we lived in a democracy
We thought we had equal rights in this country
The US constitution gives equal protection
Our rights should be protected under the law
Check the 14th amendment to make this connection
The 14th amendment should guarantee our rights as citizens
In 1787 the US constitution was ratified
The constitution was officially adopted in 1787
US Congress won the power to exclusively exercise
Congress was given the power to make laws for the nation's capital
In all cases, legislation
Congress has the power to make any laws that affect the district
Over the future capital of this nation
Congress has control over what laws apply to the capital
In 1790, selection of the district site began
The process of choosing where the district would be located started in 1790
Using a piece of Virginia and a piece of Maryland
The district was formed by using parts of both states
Forming the district of Columbia, or Washington DC
The combined parts of Virginia and Maryland became the nation's capital
But the people kept on voting in their former states, you see
Residents of the district continued to vote in their previous home states
In 1800, Congress took control of DC
Congress gained control over the nation's capital in 1800
Ended representation for the whole community
This led to the loss of representation for district residents
In the history of this country you'll find the reason why
The reasons behind our lack of representation can be found in US history
And even in a new millennium, they want this law to apply
Some still want our lack of representation to continue, even in modern times
In 1846, the portion of DC
Part of the district, Alexandria and Arlington, was returned to Virginia in 1846
From Virginia decided to retrocede
The portion of the district that once belonged to Virginia was retroceded back to the state
It was returned to the original state line
Alexandria and Arlington now belonged to Virginia again
In 1871, an elected delegate with no vote
An elected delegate was given to the district in 1871, but had no voting power
Was created for the House of Representatives, no joke
The delegate serves in the House but has no say in legislation
DC was given territorial government that year
The district was granted some self-government in 1871
Representation remained an issue, do you hear?
We still lacked representation in Congress
In 1874, financial troubles arise
The district faced financial difficulties in 1874
The position of nonvoting delegate meets its demise
The nonvoting delegate to the House was removed during this time
The territorial government that was given to DC
The district's self-government was taken away by Congress
Was taken back by Congress at this point of history
Congress removed the district's self-government
In 1970, the House brings the position back
The position of nonvoting delegate was reinstated in the House in 1970
Years of civil rights activism brought pressure with no slack
There was a lot of pressure from civil rights activists to grant the district representation
A step in the right direction brought the people so much joy
The reinstatement of the delegate position was seen as progress
And the man in this position, was Walter Faunteroy
Walter Faunteroy was the first delegate to be reinstated
In 1978, Congress finally said okay
Congress finally allowed for potential representation in 1978
To the DC Voting Rights Act, but not right away
The act did not immediately grant representation to the district
If approved within seven years with no hesitation
The district would be granted representation if a new law was approved within 7 years
DC would be granted full representation
The new law would give the district full representation in Congress
In 1985, our hopes were really, really high
There was optimism that representation would finally happen in 1985
We knew that they should not let this bill die
We believed that this issue was too important to ignore
All we needed was approval of thirty eight states
The approval of 38 states was needed to grant the district representation
But only sixteen states would support our case
Unfortunately, not enough states supported our cause
In 1993, the District made a giant step
In 1993, there was progress made towards representation
Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton worked hard to get
A congresswoman worked hard to push for representation
A DC Vote on the House floor, which Congress did approve
The House approved a vote for the district, granting some representation
But when Republicans came to power, the decision was overruled
When Republicans gained power, they reversed the decision
Now, I'm sure you are wondering what can be done?
It's clear that this issue is ongoing, so what can we do about it?
There are at least four ways that this fight can be won
There are multiple paths to achieving representation
Some suggest we retrocede as a part of Maryland
Some argue that we should return to being a part of Maryland
Become a city or county in that state once again
We would be governed by Maryland if we returned to being part of that state
Or a new law could pass with a Congressional vote
Congress could pass a new law granting the district representation
DC residents would be counted in the Maryland vote
District residents would vote in Maryland elections
For Federal elections, census taking without retroceding back
We could continue to be a separate entity for federal elections and census data
This would leave our residency in tact
We would remain residents of the district
Or, Congress could pass another law for DC
Congress could pass a law specific to the district
Like they did in 1800 when they took over totally
Congress could once again assert total control over the district
For more than five hundred reasons they treat us like a state
The district is treated like a state for many purposes
And adding another reason, should not a problem create
There's no reason why we couldn't add one more reason to treat us like a state
This would give us two US Senate seats
We would have two senators if we were granted statehood
And the census would determine the number of House seats
The number of representatives in the House would depend on our population
Preferably, DC would be the 51st state
Our ideal outcome would be to become the 51st state
We'd have a seat in the House and two in the Senate, it's not too late
We would finally have proper representation in Congress
Democracy is what we want
We want our voices to be heard in the democratic process
Voting rights are what we need
The right to vote is crucial for our representation
Tell your Congress person, it's time to take heed
Contact your representative to demand representation for the district
Contributed by Stella C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@ciawarrior7745
Powerful group
@funvideofan1625
2:02 Toshi Just Did What I Do When I Hear That Hit
@smiller2044
This song came to me as I watched Trevor Noah's clip this morning on the Verdict of the murder of Castile. We will continue to fight and #Resist
@funvideofan1625
More RAISE Your Voice
@funvideofan1625
This Is Song 14 On The CD
@amadomccarroll-gallegos5154
How Did You Get This Footage?