Thursday, September 29, 2016

Rhetorical Analysis Project: "We Shall Overcome" Final Draft

ENGL 306 | Rhetoric of Protest Assignment
September 29, 2016
Erika Zigman


“We Shall Overcome” in the Albany Movement

               “We Shall Overcome” became known as the anthem of the Civil Rights Movement due to its incredible influence as a tool of rhetoric. One of its most notable uses was during the Albany movement in Georgia. In 1952 “We Shall Overcome” was brought as a powerful weapon of protest by the Freedom Singers and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) to unite and mobilize the African-American population of Albany against oppression (Carson 58). The song broke the tradition of accommodation in the black communities there through an establishment of trust with the population and a well-structured and organized performance of a protest song that would encourage participation to a degree that had never been observed in this part of the South during the Civil Rights Movement.

               The exact origins of “We Shall Overcome” are unknown, however, musicologists theorize that the song was developed from slave labor songs used in chattel slavery to (1) set a good work pace and (2) serve as a symbol of defiance (Redmond 146). Although the song has undergone significant modifications before its use in the Albany movement during the Civil Rights Movement, its meaning remains the same. These final changes to “We Shall Overcome” were brought about by the Freedom Singers, who taught it to the black communities in Albany. The Freedom Singers were a group of activists who received funding from the SNCC to travel throughout the South in hopes of educating the black population on their basic civil liberties.

               “We Shall Overcome” was such an effective protest song because it caused the intended audience to trust the performers. This was crucial for the song to be effective in this specific context because the black population of Albany, like most people of the time, feared a violent retaliation that may follow a protest attempt. It is primarily that ‘mental block’ that resulted in their minimal involvement in the Civil Rights Movement prior to the arrival of the Freedom Singers (Carson 56). When the Freedom Singers had first come to Albany, the mere mention of their name had caused individuals walking near them to cross to the other side of the street (Carson 56). Therefore, in order for “We Shall Overcome” to be an effective rhetorical object the black community in Albany would need to know that the pay-off of their involvement in a protest would be worth the costs. One way that this was achieved was in the way that “We Shall Overcome” was performed. It was always performed calmly, confidently and in only non-violent protests with all the protestors linking hands while swaying to the music (Martin 33). The lack of excessive appeals to pathos, whether in terms of coercion through intimidation or persuasion through emotional manipulation, implies that the performers did not need to rely on pathos. This enhances the authority and ethos of the performers, establishing trustworthiness. “We Shall Overcome” further ingrains confidence and trust in the rhetor through a demonstration of shared experiences and common interests. With the song’s roots in folk music and hymns, it illustrates the shared ancestry between the rhetor and the intended audience (Martin 23). It evokes emotional imagery of the generations of oppression, making an appeal to pathos, but provides hope in the assurance that “someday” they will overcome. Singing of shared history and bravery in the face of such injustices and aggression results in a communal mental strength that is key in overcoming the fear the comes with the vulnerability of body rhetoric (Martin 23).

               Once trust was established, the transition to mobilization of the black population in Albany occurred relatively smoothly. This is largely because “We Shall Overcome” was specifically tailored to be inviting and encourage participation. When the song was taught in Albany, it was done so in common time rather than the original ¾ tempo (Redmond 150). Common time is easier to maintain, especially for those with little to no musical experience. This intentional change allowed a wider range of individuals to learn “We Shall Overcome”, made it easier to for a large group to stay in sync over an extended period of time, and common time is also the traditional tempo for marching rhythms, making “We Shall Overcome” well-suited for picketing. An additional change that was made in Albany was a change in chorus from the less inclusive ‘I shall overcome’ to the more communal ‘we shall overcome’. The latter had already been the standard that was used across the south by protestors, but the students had only known the former before the Freedom Singers came to Georgia. The Freedom Singers and SNCC insisted that the more collective vocabulary be used, they said that it was the “proper” way to sing it (Martin 33). The consistency in the performance and lyrics of “We Shall Overcome” was just as critical to the mobilization of the African-Americans as was the simplification of the song because it more strongly united a diverse group of individuals. These two key characteristics of “We Shall Overcome” permitted to reach a broad spectrum of the black community. Through the use of song, black members of rural communities could now connect to groups, like students in higher education, that they would have otherwise been unable to.

               The Albany movement itself was not successful, because of the efficiency of the police response to the protests and the lack of a spectacle which would have resulted from a violent response by the authorities and drawn the attention of the media (Carson 56). However, “We Shall Overcome” as a tool of rhetoric was extremely successful in mobilizing the black communities and maintaining the struggle over an extended period of time. This was the first time that the SNCC had successfully done so with such a large group of adults (Carson 65). In the following years, these same protest characteristics were applied systematically to black communities across the country during the Civil Rights Movement, solidifying the role of “We Shall Overcome” as a powerful tool for protest through its characteristics that encouraged participation and facilitated trust in the rhetors. As such a successful rhetorical object, “We Shall Overcome” has resurfaced in protests for civil rights around the world. It maintains relevance even today in the wake of a new movement, Black Lives Matter, nearly a century after its ancestors created it in hopes that someday they would overcome (Adams; Graham).






















Works Cited

Adams, Noah. “The Inspiring Force of ‘We Shall Overcome” NPR. NPR, 28 Aug. 2013. Web. 02 Sept. 2016.

Bobetsky, Victor V. We Shall Overcome: Essays on a Great American Song. N.p.: Rowman & Littlefield, 2014. Print.

Carson, Clayborne. In Struggle: SNCC and the Black Awakening of the 1960s. Harvard University Press, 1981, United States of America.

Graham, David A. “The Surprising History of ‘We Shall Overcome’” The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 9 May 2015. Web. 02 Sept. 2016.

Martin, Bradford D. The Theater is in the Street: Politics and Performance in Sixties America. University of Massachusetts Press, 2004, United States of America.

Morris, Charles E., and Stephen Browne H. Readings on the Rhetoric of Social Protest. Second ed. State College, PA: Strata Pub., 2001. Print.

Redmond, Shana L. Anthem: Social Movement and the Sound of Solidarity in the African Diaspora. N.p.: New York U, 2013. Print.

Rolling Stone. “’We Shall Overcome’: The Theme Song of Civil Rights.” Rolling Stone. Rolling Stone, 13 Jan. 2012. Web. 02 Sept. 2016

Stotts, Stuart,  Terrance Cummings, and Pete Seeger.  We Shall Overcome: A Song that Changed the World. New York: Clarion, 2010. Print.


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