When the Spirit Says Sing!: The Role of Freedom Songs in the Civil Rights Movement

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, such songs as We Shall Overcome, Keep Your Eyes on the Prize, and Do What the Spirit Says Do were sung at virtually every mass meeting, demonstration, and planning session of Civil Rights activists. They were sung on the Freedom Rides, during the marches, and in jail cells of the South. Movement activists have commented frequently and eloquently on the ways that singing and songs gave them strength and a sense of self. This study offers a close analysis of...