"The Bird Might Not Take Off Under These Conditions”

Referencing an airplane he apparently is sitting in or ready to board, Gil Scott Heron makes the aircraft analogy above in his song Winter in America.  In it, he speaks and sings about a political climate in America that is “frozen.”

He states, “Lately, there has been no spring, no summer and no fall; politically and philosophically and psychologically.  There has only been the season of ice.  It is a season of frozen dreams and frozen nightmares, a scene of frozen progress, and frozen ideas, frozen aspirations and inspirations.” (Is this not where we are today?)

Later, in a piece memorializing his life, Gil speaks about personal values; family, personal pride, reputation, respect and honor and citizenship, referencing voting rights fighter Fannie Lou Hamer, he describes as a diminutive force of nature, and points out that“there is nothing wrong with standing up for what you believe in” and emphasizing the point, that “there is something very wrong with not standing up for what you believe in”

He speaks of community and contribution. “When you are urged to do something is one thing, but when you are led, somebody threatens to be the only one who goes and you don’t go.”

“…there’s a lot of things to be done” so the last thing, the last thing that’s available to you is your right to complain, if you ain’t going to do nothing else, don’t say nothing, just shut up.”

“all we want people to do is to accomplish something as opposed to criticizing the people who didn’t get to do that for you yet.”

 “You can always find something to complain about”

“Either contribute or shut up”

“If someone comes to you for help and you can help them, you suppose to help them. Why wouldn’t you?”

“You will be helped in your soul by doing it, your soul needs help, and this is something you can do a little bit of something every day to help your insides.”

“Your insides are more important if can you understand it because they support everything that you radiate towards, everybody you come in contact with can feel that”

“The way you know how you look really is in the expressions on other people’s faces, when you say something and how you look is on the expressions of these other people’s faces, on the smile they give you when you play a song for them or you give them an idea they can do something with”

“Nobody can do everything, but everybody can do something”