Music in the Berkeley Free Speech Movement
Frame Analysis
Throughout history, the power of music has brought people together in order to unite under a certain belief. The University of California Berkeley Free Speech Movement was not an exception to this rule. Not only was music effective in uniting people within the university, but students outside the university were able to share in this momentous breakthrough in defending our inalienable rights as well. Shortly after witnessing this unification, the opposition to this movement would learn the seriousness of the students in regard to their requests for free speech. Through sheer negotiation, and a little force, the students would accomplish obtaining their rights to the first amendment. One specific song that embodies the students' actions in the Berkeley Free Speech Movement is Charles Tindley's "We Shall Overcome," which was actually sung at the university by Joan Baez. Through Tindley's acclaimed piece of music, one is able to see the profound impact that music had on the Berkeley Free Speech Movement.
There are many facets within Tindley's lyrics that need to be addressed in order to fully comprehend the correlation between the song and the movement itself. Prior to the movement, the students felt oppressed because they were not allowed to voice their political views on certain issues. This oppression was the catalyst that prompted the students to engage in protest. There is evidence of struggle within "We Shall Overcome" in the lines that state "We shall all be free some day…" (Tindley). This shows that the students are not free to voice their opinion, and as such, they call for reform by gathering together in one collective group, behind the ideal that everyone should have the right to free expression. One way that students were able to publicly display their distaste for their lack of freedom was through the many sit-ins that were held on the campus, in Sproul Hall.
Even within the title of this piece of music, there are parallels that can be drawn to the Berkeley Free Speech Movement. As stated before, the students staged sit-ins at Sproul Hall in response to the oppressive administration that took their rights away. Sit-ins could not prove powerful without a multitude of people present to support the cause inspiring the act. By simply stating "we shall overcome" over and over, as the song does, the students were able to show that they needed to work together to overcome the oppression that the administration was forcing on them. When the Berkeley students held an officer at bay for 32 hours they were trying to overcome the restrictions disabling them from voicing their political views. “We shall overcome someday” shows that they did not succeed at overcoming the administrative restraints, but that they still had hope of succeeding eventually through persistent revolt. The song shows that one action of revolt is not enough to overcome an oppressor but that it can be done through persistent, unified work.
As history would soon prove, the Berkeley Free Speech Movement was a success. However, it is necessary to understand how it achieved this status to fully understand the effect the movement had on society. Some solutions proposed by the movement’s members could be found in the song. For instance, the repetition of the word “we” throughout the song is representative of the idea that the students will unite and fight for their rights to the first amendment. This consistent use of the word further promotes the concept that it is essential for people to stand together for alone they will accomplish very little.
When looking into the deeper meaning of the song, it is clear that the lyrics symbolically embody the spirit of the Berkeley Free Speech Movement. The singers choose the words “the whole wide world around”, where “the world” is symbolic of the Berkeley campus, a place that the students have come to know as such an immense part of their lives in so many ways. This symbol is used to show that the students’ battle is campus wide and will need everyone within that area to join and help aid in the fight. Similar to the Berkeley Free Speech Movement, the Civil Rights Movement of the same decade resulted in the gaining of more rights for the group involved. This outcome was what the Berkeley movement hoped to achieve. The members saw how large numbers greatly affected the outcome. Therefore, the lyrics “the whole wide world around” helped reflect the groups desire to use numbers as a way to achieve their desired goal.
In “We Shall Overcome”, the lyrics use motivation towards the goal as a strong way to draw people in and encourage involvement in protecting their first amendment rights. In this song, the most encouraging lines are, “Oh, deep in my heart, I do believe.” By singing the words “in my heart… I believe” in the repeated lines, the members hope to inspire people to continue fighting for the cause despite problems they may see in the future as anything important to them personally is worth fighting for. In the song we also hear, “We are not afraid,” which is used to evoke a sense of strength in the members, which will keep them standing through all that may come their way. Another strong verse is “We are not alone.” This lyric allows a listener to be assured that they are fighting alongside those who believe in a common goal and will neither back down nor give up. Establishing a sense of community is essential in bringing out the greatest inner strength of each individual. These words encourage those who listen to feel a sense of comfort, brotherhood, and most importantly, security and safety.
Repetition is a large part of the motivation in this song. The repetition of the lines makes it easy for large amounts of people to memorize the song, join in singing, and, in turn, inspire more people to listen, grasp the situation at hand and get involved. Each stanza is made up of one line repeated three times. The song repeats “some day” in every verse, reinforcing the idea that a continued fight will eventually lead them to a resolution and inspiring them not to give up hope. The use of repetition helped people to understand what they were fighting for and motivated them to work hard to achieve an everlasting effect.
Tindley's powerful yet repetitive lyrics helped drive an entire movement into success. Through strong identification of the problem, insightful words of a solution, and a driving motivation, this song proved how a single piece of music could influence and move an entire group of people in their fight for free speech. “We Shall Overcome” became a driving force to a movement that had a very strong impact in American history.