December 7, 1942, Harry Chapin came into the world in the usual way.
He would exit it abruptly on a July afternoon in a car accident on the Long Island Expressway which claimed his life at the age of 38.
But he left an indelible impact. Harry Chapin received an Oscar nomination, recorded 11 albums, his work appeared on Broadway, performed at least 200 concerts a year, half of them benefits for various non-profit organizations and co-founded a non-profit of his own called World Hunger Year (now known as WHY Hunger). Between all that he found the time to lobby Congress and in turn President Carter to establish the Presidential Commission on World Hunger.
While Chapin had a left-wing political orientation, he did not hate conservatives. He knew that if he wanted to combat world hunger that he would to win over Republicans and he did it as only he could. After Chapin's death numerous Congressmen and Senators spoke in both Houses of Congress to pay him tribute. One tribute which stands out in particular is that of then Senate Majority Leader and later GOP presidential nominee Bob Dole who described Chapin as "a liberal in the best sense of the word." Dole went to say, "What he was really committed to was decency and dignity."
Thirty years ago today, Chapin was posthumously bestowed with a Congressional Gold Medal, an honor rarely bestowed upon a musician.
It is of course impossible to know exactly what Chapin would have thought of our world today had he lived to see his 75th birthday. But I suspect two things. First, he wouldn't like our state of affairs. Second, he would try to do something about it. R.I.P.
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