Protest Songs
A protest song is a song that is associated with a movement for social change. It may be folk, classical, or commercial in genre. Among social movements that have an associated body of songs are the abolition movement, women’s suffrage, the labour movement, the human rights movement, civil rights, the anti-war movement, the feminist movement, the animal rights movement, and environmentalism.
So why do protesters often resort to singing, clapping, and chanting to get their message across? It’s well known that music can evoke strong emotions in people, giving words of prose an even stronger message and meaning when added to music.
Protest songs are often situational, having been associated with a social movement through context. “Goodnight Irene”, for example, acquired the aura of a protest song because it was written by Lead Belly, a black convict and social outcast, although on its face it is a love song. Or they may be abstract, enclosing messages of opposition to injustice and support for peace, or free thought, but audiences usually know what is being referred to. Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy”, a song in support of universal brotherhood, is a song of this kind. It is a setting of a poem by Friedrich Schiller celebrating the continuum of living beings (who are united in their capacity for feeling pain and pleasure and hence for empathy), to which Beethoven himself added the lines that all men are brothers.
Music has also been shown to promote group unity. With each verse and repetition of a song, the group solidifies their sense of interconnectedness. Finally, songs are catchy and have the tendency to penetrate the mind of any listener, leading them through endless repetitions. In this way, songs help protesters to spread their message to a much larger audience.
Vocabulary:
protest song – a song that expresses disapproval of something, usually a political or social issue, “The crowd sang a famous protest song to show they disagreed with the new law.”
movement for social change – a large group of people working together to fix a major problem or rule in society, “The movement for social change helped women win the right to vote.”
resort to – to do or use something because there are no other good choices available, “When the car would not start, we had to resort to walking to the grocery store.”
evoke strong emotions – to bring out very powerful or deep feelings in someone, “Looking at old family photo albums can easily evoke strong emotions.”
situational – related to or decided by a specific situation or context rather than a general rule, “Whether you wear a fancy suit or casual shorts is situational and depends on where you are going.”
acquired the aura of – slowly gained a certain feeling, quality, or reputation over time, “The abandoned school acquired the aura of being haunted because nobody went inside for decades.”
on its face – looking at something from just the outside or at first glance, before knowing the deeper facts, “On its face, the puzzle looked very easy, but it actually took an hour to solve.”
universal brotherhood – the idea that all human beings in the world are connected and should treat each other with kindness like a family, “The global festival was organized to celebrate peace and universal brotherhood.”
group unity – a feeling of togetherness, support, and agreement among members of a group, “Wearing the same bright uniform helps build group unity before a big sports match.”
solidifies their sense of interconnectedness – strengthens the feeling that everyone is linked, close, or connected to one another, “Working on a difficult project together solidifies their sense of interconnectedness as a team.”
penetrate the mind – to enter deeply into a person’s thoughts or memory so they cannot forget it, “The catchy melody of that new commercial has a way to penetrate the mind for days.”