American Labor Movement from Joe Hill to Joe Glazer

The American Labor movement was a movement created by an organized group of working people/laborers to campaign in their own interest for better treatment from their employers. In the U.S, driven by wage cuts and poor working conditions, violent outbreaks of strikes and a long series of battles occurred all over the country because the government was not willing to intervene. In order to achieve their goals those laborers had to get together and create labor unions. Workers created unions because groups have more bargaining power than individuals. When large groups of employees make joint decisions, employers are forced to listen to their concerns. For example, if all the workers in a factory stopped working at the same time, it would be difficult to keep the company operating. One of the very influential activists of this movement was Joe Hill. The music of Joe Hill was a uniting force that captured the spirit of the radical Industrial Workers of the World (I.W.W.) labor movement. He chose a famous/familiar tunes and then added words to them; words that were against the wealthy elite and their exploitive behavior. This way the workers could express their concerns through songs. "A pamphlet, no matter how good, is never read more than once," Hill once wrote to a friend. "But a song is learned by heart and repeated over and over.”  Although he never recorded his songs, Hill's music was passed from voice-to-voice across America with certain songs emerging as anthems for struggling groups of men and women seeking to have better working conditions and the wages they deserve. His work laid a foundation for generations of future activists who would seek to express political, social and/or economic vision for change in song. In the link below, Paul Robeson, who is known for his activism in the civil rights movement, sings the song “I Thought I Heard Joe Hill Last Night”. This song shows the idea that Joe Hill’s contribution was so significant to the early labor movement that his presence continues to be felt in his absence; because through his songs he keeps being there beside the laborers when they go on to organize. Below is the link I referred to:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8Kxq9uFDes

 In the video “Joe Glazer discusses music in the American Labor Movement”, Joe Glazer claims that “everything in the issue of the labor movement depends on solidarity.” No matter how strong of an argument the workers had, he says, if they would not stick together they would lose it. Songs are important to build a solidary spirit just like in the church, in the army, etc. And you have to have that kind of spirit- the spirit of solidarity; and music helps to build that. Furthermore, he says that there were a lot of strikes without music; a lot of battles without music, but if you had music included, it is “like having an extra weapon” Here is the link that will take you to the video “Joe Glazer discusses music in the American Labor Movement”:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zaQ7qWo6120.  Also, in Courtney Brown’s “Industrialization and the Rise of Labor Music” is mentioned how music functioned in the early American Labor movement. Just like Joe Glazer said, music brings solidarity, and that is what the workers needed during that time. For example, the I.W.W printed many of Joe’s songs in what became known as the Little Red Songbook. And although Joe Hill was unavailable sometimes, this songbook traveled well, and it seems certain that this made the laborers feel united and it made them feel like Joe Hill was with them as they organized. Many of these songs encouraged workers to join the I.W.W. “Everybody’s Joining” is a good example in this regard. And some of the songs called for action on the part of the laboring masses.

The song I chose is called “Mr. Block”. Joe Hill wrote “Mr. Block” to the tune of” It Looks to Me Like a Big Time Tonight” This is a satirical song which tells the story of a worker who fails to take a stand for his rights and falls into error upon error. I think this song could be used at any point in time for different social and political issues/injustices because the message it carries will always apply to someone; because there will always be someone who will not fight for his/her rights. There will always be an ignorant person who time and time again “falls for all the games of their many masters who exploit them to the limit"  In the link below you will find the lyrics and an audio file of the song “Mr. Block” by Joe Hill: http://www.kued.org/productions/joehill/voices/misterblock.html