Mavis Staples Quotes Mavis Staples on Activism, Dr

Mavis Staples Quotes Mavis Staples on Activism, Dr. King and her hometown Chicago:

“Pops said that because we wanted to sing about what was happening in the world. So when I joined [the label] Anti and wanted to make a record, and we were talking about these freedom songs, I was thinking about [Hurricane] Katrina. There’s still injustice happening in my world...Well Lord, I’m still on the case. I’m still doing what Dr. King and Pops want me to do. I’m still on that freedom highway, and I’m going to walk on it until Dr. King’s dream is realized.

[Kids] need to know that [Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.] was a man of conviction. And also, he was a human being. I don’t know if they realize that. He was jovial and he was humorous. I loved to hear his laughter. He always seemed so serious or sad, and when I would hear him laugh, I would say Dr. King was happy. The kids need to know here was a man who went out and risked his life to make it a better place for them, went to jail, was beat down and stabbed.

Oh yes, oh Lord, yes. Dr. King said Chicago was the worst place he visited. It was worse than Mississippi and Alabama. It was so hurtful and embarrassing. Dr. King was here in our city.”

Mavis Staples on Singing:

“I sing because I want to leave people feeling better than I found them. I want them to walk away with a positive message in their hearts, feeling stronger than they felt before. I’m singing to myself for those same reasons, too.”

Mavis Staples on the Staple Singers:

“When we started our family group, The Staple Singers, we started out mostly singing in churches in the South. Pops saw Dr. Martin Luther King speak in 1963 and from there we started to broaden our musical vision beyond just gospel songs. Pops told us, ‘I like this man. I like his message. And if he can preach it, we can sing it.’ So we started to write ‘Freedom Songs,’ like ‘Why Am I Treated So Bad,’ ‘When Will We Be Paid for the Work We’ve Done,’ ‘Long Walk to DC,’ and many others. Like many in the Civil Rights Movement, we drew on the spirituality and the strength from the church to help gain social justice and to try to achieve equal rights.

We became a major voice for the civil rights movement and hopefully helped to make a difference in this country. It was a difficult and dangerous time (in 1965 we spent a night in jail in West Memphis, Arkansas and I wondered if we’d ever make it out alive) but we felt we needed to stand up and be heard.

So for us, and for many in the civil rights movement, we looked to the church for inner strength and to help make positive changes. And that seems to be missing today. Here it is, 2007, and there are still so many problems and social injustices in the world. Well, I tell you we need a change now more than ever, and I’m turning to the church again for strength.”