Description
Book SynopsisThe activist anthem We Shall Not Be Moved expresses resolve in the face of adversity; it helps members of social movements persevere in their struggles to build a better world. The exact origins of the song are unknown, but it appears to have begun as a Protestant revival song sung by rural whites and African slaves in the southeastern United States in the early nineteenth century. The song was subsequently adopted by U.S. labor and civil rights activists, students and workers opposing the Franco dictatorship in Spain, and by Chilean supporters of that country's socialist government in the early 1970s.In his fascinating biography, We Shall Not Be Moved, David Spener details the history and the role the song has played in each of the movements in which it has been sung. He analyzes its dissemination, function, and meaning through a number of different sociological and anthropological lenses to explore how songs can serve as an invaluable resource to participants in movements for social
Trade Review“We Shall Not Be Moved/No nos moverán is the fascinating history of a famous song of struggle. Through his exploration of how floating bridges were constructed between distant communities to support and defend social justice in a variety of political contexts, Spener has made a significant contribution to the anthropology of music.”—Joaquina Labajo, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
“We Shall Not Be Moved/No nos moverán is an intriguing and inspiring book. The story of the evolution of ‘We Shall Not Be Moved’ illuminates the significance of songs as a resource in social movements. This story teaches us a great deal about how major movements in the United States, in Spain, and in Latin America not only made history but also made culture. But there is more: This book uncovers the international structures of communication and shared identity that help constitute processes of globalization from below.”—Richard Flacks, University of California, Santa Barbara
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments
Introduction
I: HISTORY OF A SONG OF STRUGGLE
1. A Song, Socialism, and the 1973 Military Coup in Chile
2. "I Shall Not Be Moved" in the U.S. South: Blacks and Whites, Slavery and Spirituals
3. From Worship to Work: A Spiritual Is Adopted by the U.S. Labor Movement and the Left
4. From Union Song to Freedom Song: Civil Rights Activists Sing an Old Tune for a New Cause
5. From English in the U.S. South to Spanish in the U.S. Southwest: "We Shall Not Be Moved" Becomes "No nos moverán"
6. Across the Atlantic to Spain
II: MOVEMENTS AND MEANINGS
7. Social Movement: A Song's Journey across Time and Space
8. Translation and Transcendence in the Travels of a Song
Conclusion: An Internationalist Culture of the Singing Left in the Twentieth Century
Coda
Appendix: Note on Methods and Sourcesy
Notes
References
Index
