By Christine

McDonald

When the Spirit

says SING!

Volume 1, Issue 1
05 May 2016

Introduction

T
History has never
known a protest
movement so rich in
song as the civil
rights movement.
Nor a movement in
which songs are as
important.
(Sanger 15)

he history of blacks in
the U.S. is one of great
turmoil and struggle:
kidnapped and torn from
their homes in Africa,
brought to the great country
of America to be slaves
treated worse than animals.
They found freedom from
physical slavery after a war
that divided this nation. But
they had not yet won
freedom within society. It
would take another
century before the blacks
living in this country would
begin to break ground in
winning their freedom to
be human beings. They
were still seen as
subhuman and inferior to
the majority white
population.

different strategies and

tactics to bring attention to
their cause and to
communicate the changes
they desired: sit-ins, marches
& mass demonstrations,
Freedom Rides, and other
forms of civil disobedience
(Sanger 15). But they also
utilized a communication
strategy that had never been
so important to another
movement as the Civil Rights
Movement: singing.

n this issue of SING! the

strategic use of song as a
communication tactic will be
explored by reviewing the
historical background of how
and why the use of song
came about, how song
empowered those involved in
the movement, and how song
is used today.

hroughout the Civil

Rights movement, black
Americans used many

Ideological Racism pg. 2

he use of song during the

civil rights movement
provided blacks with
motivation and perseverance
to fight for their rights and to
overcome the injustices they
faced. We shall overcome
was a popular phrase and
song title that demonstrates
how song was used as a tool
of motivation and
empowerment for blacks
protesting the prejudice and
discrimination against them.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

Singing Their Way to

Freedom pg. 2

Redefinition of Self pg. 2 Collective & Individual

Identity pg. 3

Contemporary America
pg. 4
Final Thoughts pg. 4

Ideological Racism:
Defining Blacks in the U.S.

fter the banning of slavery

as a legal practice in the
United States and during the
Reconstruction period after
the Civil War had ended, the
South tried to find a new way
to keep blacks under their
controlthe result of
ideological racism that had
become rampant throughout
the country but especially in
the Southern states.

ne way Southerners
establish[ed] other forms of

domination [was by] the

perpetuation of a demeaning,
and pervasive, definition of
blacks (Sanger 3).
Southerners created an
identity for the blacks that
regarded them as subhuman,
and as passive and dependent
on the paternalism of
whites (Sanger 3).

hile slavery in the form

of bondage in chains had been
outlawed, slavery in the form
of rhetoric and self-doubt
took its place. For example,

some blacks had come to

believe that they could not
learn nor be a productive
citizen as they were denied
education and decent jobs due
to laws such as the Jim Crow
laws and discrimination
(Sanger 4). Slavery had a new
face in the United Statesit
was now more-so
psychologicaland what was
needed was a redefinition of
self for the blacks (Sanger 8).

Protestors marching against the segregation of education (The Odyssey)

Redefinition of Self: Singing Their Way to Freedom

ne of the most
important ways in which
blacks worked towards a
redefinition of self was
through the freedom songs
that had roots in the time of
slavery and were reshaped
and widely used throughout
the Civil Rights Movement.
In a sense, singing as a vehicle

Page 2

for social change and reform

created a new identity, a

There is no armor more

impenetrable than song.
(Sanger 16)

rebirth, and a different kind

of power (Sanger 10) for

blacks involved in the Civil

Rights Movement. Especially
seen in the lyrics of the songs
themselves, song not only
created a new identity for
individuals but also for blacks
as a collective. Singing
became a powerful motivator
and unifier among the blacks
fighting for their freedom
from discrimination.

W H E N T H E SP I R I T S A Y S S I NG !

Page 3

VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1

Collective & Individual Identity:

The Power of Lyrics

any of the songs used by

the activists of the Civil Rights
Movement emphasized both the
collective and individual identity
of those in the movement. The
use of I and We was
prevalent in many of the songs.
Some examples of songs
commonly sung that
incorporated the collective and
individual identities include We
Shall Overcome (see lyrics
below), Keep Your Eyes on the
Prize and This Little Light of
Mine.

he other way using song

was important to identity was

because it invoked emotion

both in the protestors and
those listening. It was also
important because it provided
direction in how to express
their energy and deal with their
moods, and [gave] them a
voice (van Blommestein and Hope
1). The songs could be sung
anywhere: during marches and
demonstrations, in jail, in homes,

Keep your eyes on

the prize, hold on!
~Mavis Staples

during speeches. The lyrics also

were varied depending on who was
singing them and where they were
being sung. Songs were a mobile &
creative form of protest for those
involved in the Civil Rights
Movement, thus connecting people
anywhere and everywhere and
motivating them to keep fighting
wherever they were.

he songs not only created a

sense of connectedness among the
individuals but also emphasized the
importance of each individuals
participation in the movement and
in his or her ability to make a
difference. The songs, thus,
emphasized that it is the minds and
hearts of individuals that need to be
changed in order for change within
society to occur (Howard-Pitney).

Song Lyrics:
We Shall
Overcome
We shall overcome, we shall
overcome, We shall overcome
someday. Oh, deep in my heart, I
do believe, We shall overcome
someday.
The truth will make us free, the
truth will make us free, The truth
will make us free someday, Oh,
deep in my heart, I do believe, We
shall overcome someday.
We'll walk hand in hand, we'll walk
hand in hand, We'll walk hand in
hand someday. Oh, deep in my
heart, I do believe, We shall
overcome someday.
We are not afraid, we are not
afraid, We are not afraid today. Oh,
deep in my heart, I do believe, We
shall overcome someday.
The truth shall make us. free, the
truth shall make us free, The truth
shall make us free someday. Oh,
deep in my heart, I do believe, We
shall overcome someday.

Blacks & whites joining hands and singing together (Getty Publications)

An example of the emotion and

passion that went into singing the
Freedom Songs
(Teaching for Change)

Contemporary
America

Despite the Civil Rights Movement being over 50 years ago,

race is still an issue in modern day America. For example, the
Black Lives Matter movement is a recent movement that is
fighting institutionalized racism, which unfortunately still exists
in our country. Beyonc's recent performance at Super Bowl
50 has also sparked controversy around the issue of racewas
this a modern day anthem for the fight against racism in
support of the Black Lives Matter movement or is this her
using her platform as a musician to remind blacks to be proud

BEYONC

of their identity? Either way you look at itwhether youre

on the #BoycottBeyonce side or the #blackgirlmagic

Super Bowl Performance

Click here to
check it out!

sideI think it is important to acknowledge that, obviously,

the issue of race and the color of a persons skin as part of
their identity has neither been solved nor dissolved in the

United States.

People of all ages are getting

involved in the Black Lives
Matter movement (Occupy.com)

Final Thoughts
I think that without music and
singing, the Civil Rights
Movement would not have been
as successful as it was. It wasnt
just a political or legal rights
movement but a movement
about changing the hearts and
minds of peopleof human
beings each with a unique
identity but with similarities as
well. It was a movement that
recognized that the social
change being demanded was for
human beings with emotions,

with a soul, and with a personal

identity a focus that easily
gets lost in social movements. I
also think that using song was
effective because music is a
universal language that breaks
down barriers between people
and unites them as one. While
the issue of race is still prevalent
in todays world, the work of
the activists of the Civil Rights
Movement has made a lasting
impact on generations to come.

Official Twitter logo

WORKS CITED

Sanger, Kerran. When the Spirit Says Sing! The Role of Freedom Songs in the Civil Rights Movement. New York: Garland, 1995.
Print.

Howard-Pitney, David. Martin Luther King Jr., and Malcolm X, and the Civil Rights Struggle of the 1950s and 1960s: A Brief
History with Documents. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2004. Print.

MAVIS STAPLES LYRICS - Eyes On The Prize. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 May 2016.

van Blommestein, Jeremy, and Sarah Hope. The Language of Songs: The Utilization of Freedom Songs as a Form of
Protest in the South African Anti-Apartheid and U.S. Civil Rights Movements. International Journal of Knowledge, Culture
& Change in Organizations: Annual Review 10 (2012): 5968. Print.

PHOTOS

We shall overcome photo http://www.wvu.edu/~lawfac/jscully/Race/images/we%20shall%20overcome.jpg?width=200

Beyonce photo: http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/02/09/14/30FC4B6700000578-3438782-image-m-26_1455026577010.jpg

School Segregation Protestors: http://theodysseyonline.com/ksu/why-so-much-racism-exists-in-america/159672

Blacks & whites singing: This Is the Day: The March on Washington. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 May 2016.
http://www.getty.edu/publications/day.html

Passionate Singing: The Selma Voting Rights Struggle: 15 Key Points from Bottom-Up History and Why It Matters Today. Teaching for Change. N.p., 2 Jan. 2015. Web. 4 May 2016. http://www.teachingforchange.org/selma-bottom-uphistory

Black Lives Matter: https://twitter.com/hashtag/blacklivesmatter

Young Girl: Black Lives Matter: The Evolution of A Movement. Occupy.com. N.p., 16 Mar. 2015. Web. 4 May 2016.
http://www.occupy.com/article/black-lives-matter-evolution-movement

SUGGESTED RESOURCES

Black Lives Matter: http://blacklivesmatter.com/

Beyonce Controversy:

http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2016/02/12/backlash-to-beyonce-super-bowl-performance-continues-to-grow.html

http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/24/living/black-girl-magic-feat/index.html

http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/23/entertainment/beyonce-controversy-feat/

https://www.google.com/search?q=beyonce+super+bowl+controversy&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

Bates, Sally et al. Everybody Says Freedom: A History of the Civil Rights Movement in Songs and Pictures/Freedom
Bound: A History of Americas Civil Rights Movement (Book). School Library Journal 36.5 (1990): 138. Print.

FREEDOM SONG: Young Voices and the Struggle for Civil Rights. Kirkus Reviews 76.22 (2008): 12081208. Print.

WGBH American Experience . Soundtrack for a Revolution. American Experience. PBS., n.d. Web. 4 May 2016.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/general-article/soundtrack-lyrics/

Voices of the Civil Rights Movement: Black American Freedom Songs 1960-1966 | Smithsonian Folkways. N.p., n.d.
Web. 4 May 2016.

http://www.folkways.si.edu/voices-of-the-civil-rights-movement-black-american-freedom-songs-1960-1966/africanamerican-music-documentary-struggle-protest/album/smithsonian