Preserve the memory of your loved one with a plaque on our Yahrzeit Wall. Learn More ->

Search
Close this search box.

Lift Up Your Heads, for Juneteenth

man with outstretched arms silhouetted from behind, facing the sunrise
Lift up your heads, you gates!
Lift them up, everlasting doors,
So that the glorious king can enter!
Who is he, this glorious king?
Adonai, strong and mighty,
Adonai, mighty in battle.
Psalm 24:7-8
 
For Juneteenth
 
There was a moment when
Harriet Tubman said,
my people are free, even when
the world didn’t seem it.
Didn’t show it.
 
Lift your heads up; clap your hands.
(clap your hands, make some noise,
use your face, feel your breath)
 
Everyone: Our people are free.
 
And in General Order Number 3,
the freedmen are advised to
remain quietly,
freedom not yet manifest.
 
Lift your heads up; clap your hands.
(clap your hands, make some noise,
use your face, feel your breath)
 
Everyone: Our people are free.
 
We will not be quiet. We will sing for freedom,
clap our hands for freedom. Demand freedom
of our voices, of our bodies, of our lives.
 
Lift your heads up; clap your hands.
(clap your hands, make some noise,
use your face, feel your breath)
 
Everyone: Our people are free.
 
Solidarity demands action for freedom.
We will not live quietly and in our living.
Be accountable for the ways in which
Black people are not yet free.
 
Lift your heads up; clap your hands.
(clap your hands, make some noise,
use your face, feel your breath)
 
Everyone: Our people are free.
Facebook
Email

Ritualwell content is available for free thanks to the generous support of readers like you! Please help us continue to offer meaningful content with a donation today. 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Rituals

The Reconstructionist Network

Serving as central organization of the Reconstructionist movement

Training the next generation of groundbreaking rabbis

Modeling respectful conversations on pressing Jewish issues

Curating original, Jewish rituals, and convening Jewish creatives

Join the Ritualwell community to read and discuss examples of hope expressed in writing through song, story, humor and metaphor that will stir you to think about where hope lives within you.

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.

Get the latest from Ritualwell

Subscribe for the latest rituals, online learning opportunities, and unique Judaica finds from our store.

The Reconstructionist Network