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How a Global Anthem Faded in an Era of Self and Nation First

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The Night the World Sang in One Key

Forty years ago, a soundwave of unprecedented unity swept across the globe. From the crackle of a transistor radio in Manila to the speakers of a family television in Cairo, the message was clear and simple: “We are the world, we are the children.”

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From Chorus to Echo Chamber

But in a world increasingly dominated by curated individualism and fortified borders, we seem to have forgotten its essence. The powerful call to collective action has been drowned out by two modern mantras: “Me first” and “My nation first.”

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The Algorithm Doesn’t Sing

“Have you Play the song. Sit with one line. What does lending a hand mean to you today?”

The song’s plea—“it’s time to lend a hand to life”—feels profoundly at odds with the spirit of our age.

The 21st century has crowned the individual as a brand. Social media, while connecting us in theory, has built digital echo chambers in practice. Our feeds reflect our own interests, solidify our biases, and shrink our worldview.

“Lending a hand” has been reduced to a performative hashtag, a temporary profile frame, or a ‘like’ on a tragic story before we scroll to the next piece of content.

We are still pretending, as the lyrics warned, “that someone, somewhere will soon make a change.”

Only now, our Pretence is cushioned by the illusion of curated reality—where the world’s most pressing problems can be silenced with a swipe.

#LendARealHand

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Flags Don’t Stop Fires

This inward focus is mirrored on a grander scale: the resurgence of hardline nationalism.

The song’s core belief—“we are all a part of God’s great big family”—has been challenged by exclusionary policies, trade wars, and a retreat from global cooperation.

“What does it mean to be part of one family in a divided world?”

The very crises that demand a We Are the World spirit—climate change, refugee emergencies, and the memory of vaccine hoarding—have been met with the opposite: raised drawbridges.

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Twisting the Lyric

“There’s a choice we’re making, we’re saving our own lives”

was meant to affirm shared destiny. That in saving others, we save our collective humanity.

Today, that line has been twisted into a justification for national survivalism.
It’s no longer about saving “our own lives” as a global community, but saving lives within borders—often at the expense of others.

The world is no longer a single entity to be nurtured, but a competitive arena.
And yet, fires, floods, and viruses do not recognize flags.

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The Anthem Didn’t Fail—We Did

So, has the anthem failed?

Perhaps not.

Its message hasn’t become irrelevant—we’ve simply become poor listeners.

Its idealism is a benchmark against which we can measure our current reality.

It reminds us that global cooperation is not a naive dream, but a tangible achievement once realized, broadcast, and celebrated.

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Press Play Again

Forty years on, the song stands as a ghost of a more hopeful past.

A poignant reminder of a time when the world’s biggest stars believed—and made us believe—that a better day was possible if we just acted as one.

It begs the question:

What would it take to create such a moment of global unity today?

In an age of deep division, perhaps the first step is to simply listen to the old song again.

And ask ourselves honestly:

Is the world it describes one we’re willing to let go of forever?

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The Choice Is Ours to Make

Let the chorus echo again—not just in memory, but in action.
Not just in playlists, but in practice.

Listen. Then choose.

#PerformativeActivism

#DigitalEchoChamber

#NationalismVsGlobalism

#SocialMediaActivism

#HumanityFirst

#UnityNotDivision