Text by David Biddle, Copyright 2025
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Wielding Hopes and Dreams
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Back in March, TW Magazine published commentary by me called “Which Way We Going Now?” What I wondered in that piece was how artists of all types were going to respond to changes forced on us by this new administration.
The last time we had to deal with those folks, the only truly significant artistic attempts to address problems seemed to come from comedians. Now, however, we are living with this second term version. I don’t need to go into detail. Anything I write explicitly will be overshadowed by new bizarre travesties tomorrow.
What concerns me most these days is that so many of my fellow citizens feel somehow touched by the shadow of anger and frustration. A dose or two of that anger and frustration can serve as fuel for figuring out how to fight back. But too much of it is dangerous. Besides the obvious problem of being consumed by rage, it is equally as dangerous to give up and fold on one’s commitment to a more humane and sustainable society.
Rage or passivity is where art and artists come in. Comedians are definitely keeping us laughing in many different ways. I’ve also seen some great poetry of late—Jorie Graham’s “Who” published in the New York Review of Books and James Parker’s “America in 2025” in The Atlantic. The movie “Sinners” comes to mind as well.
We are fortunate, then. Yes, America has had a perpetual battle with itself over racializing people along with a never-ending hostility to immigrants. But we’re fortunate because we also have a never-ending history of music, literature, painting, fashion, photography, and performance going back to our beginning. Much of that creativity addresses the need to take care of each other, join together, and to fight bully politicians and a certain type of the rich elite.
The first key explosion by an artist is obviously what we just heard with Bruce Springsteen’s viral May 14 Manchester, England concert speeches. The Boss perfectly laid down the gauntlet for all of us—especially those of us who are dedicated to artistic expression.
Springsteen calls the tour he and the E Street Band are on the “Land of Hope & Dreams Tour.” Hopes and dreams are the magic of the arts. That magic is also a weapon we can wield as we speak out in rebellion and in favor of compassion and understanding. That’s not easy to do well—especially in this era we’re living through. But hopes and dreams and visions of a positive future for all of us are how we have moved forward together throughout our history.
We will always be re-building America. Trying to make life better for everyone is the greatest form of creativity I can think of. The arts are not going to save us or solve the specific problems we are dealing with right now, but they can remind us that who we are as a nation is based on who we are as individuals and families and neighborhoods. Sometimes we get politicians and fellow citizens who don’t understand what I’ve written here. We’ve dealt with situations like this before. We’re going to deal with them again.
David Biddle is an author who lives in Philadelphia. His latest novel, Sound Effect Infinity, is now available as an Ebook and is scheduled for release as a premium hardcover in late summer. Track him down at his website: https://davidbiddle.net
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To access David Biddle’s Which Way We Going Now article, link here: https://tonyward.com/david-biddle-which-way-we-going-now/