Of all the Pete Seeger songs I heard growing up, "Which Side Are You On?" always struck me as more of a dirge than a Labor anthem. When you listen to it, it's almost threatening in tone, and very dark throughout.
There's a reason for this. It was a threat. It's a song which can easily be sung through clenched teeth, to put it bluntly. As Benjamin Franklin quipped, just before he signed the Declaration of Independence: "We must, indeed, all hang together, or most assuredly we shall all hang separately." He was not, it should be pointed out, speaking figuratively. Our Founding Fathers knew they were risking the hangman's rope by what they were doing to bring self-rule and democracy to America.
In the Labor movement, the same stark choice existed: you're either with us, or you're against us. This was a hard-fought lesson. Infiltration was constant, and telling friend from foe was a life-or-death choice at times.
"Which Side Are You On?" is a folk song. It was written by Florence Reece in 1931, in Harlan County, Kentucky. Her husband was forced from his home by the henchmen of J.H. Blair, a local mineowner. After "deputies" illegally invaded and searched her house (her husband was warned in advance, and escaped), Florence immediately wrote the lyrics to this song, on a calendar ripped from the wall of their home. So you can see, even though the music and tone of the song is rather confrontational and dirge-like, there's a valid reason for this. The woman who wrote it had just seen her husband driven from their home by corporate thugs.
Which explains the raw emotion of the song. You're either with us or against us. It's a stark choice, with no room for nuance whatsoever. Pete Seeger recognized this, and made the song famous, far beyond the local Labor dispute which caused it to be written.
This song has been running through my head for a week now.
Every time I visit an unabashedly pro-Hillary website and read the comments posted thereon, I keep thinking: Which side are you on? Will you, out of spite of losing, vote for a man who is the exact opposite of the candidate you supported so fervently? Will you tempt fate with the future of abortion rights in this country? Will you really vote for a man who sees 100 years of American troops in Iraq as a viable outcome? Is your belief in Barack Obama's defeat in November enough for you to contribute to a self-fulfilling prophecy that leaves the White House in Republican hands for the next four years? Hillary didn't win, she lost the nomination. Are you really that upset with Barack Obama (whose platform is virtually identical to Hillary Clinton's) that you would vote against everything Hillary has been fighting for? Even if she told you not to? In short, what kind of Democrat are you?
Like I said, this song has been running through my head of late. Which side are you on?
One of the best things about folks songs is that they are constantly being rewritten. Each writer, in each generation, adapts the song (and the feeling behind it) to fit it into current happenings, in order to keep the spirit of the song alive. The song evolves. That's part of what makes it a folk song.
I humbly offer the following rewrite of the lyrics to "Which Side Are You On?" in this spirit. I based it on Pete Seeger's version of the song. This should (again, in my humble opinion) be emailed to any supporters of Hillary Rodham Clinton who refuse to recognize the reality that Barack Obama is now the Democratic nominee for president, and is our only chance to beat Republican John McCain this fall.
And, in a pre-emptive defense, I maintain that my changes to the lyrics are not sexist in any way. I use the word "girls" in the chorus, it is true, but this is always paired with the original (at least in the Pete Seeger version) "boys," since there are fervent Clinton supporters of both sexes out there. The original song, even though written by a woman, is far more sexist than the version I present -- using such lines as: "Will you be a lousy scab / or will you be a man?" And "ladies" or "women" just doesn't fit the scansion of the song (too many syllables). Also, Hillary Clinton has not only called herself a "girl" during this campaign, she's actually used it in fundraising [PDF]. So calling Clinton supporters "girls" and "boys" merely fits in with the spirit of the song, nothing more. As I said, I pair the two, and move to the generic "Dems" to indicate all Democrats at the end.
It does make me a little nervous, suggesting lyrics for a song with such an illustrious history. But I address this version to all Hillary-supporting Democrats: can you truly call yourself a Democrat and vote for John McCain in November? And hope that Florence Reese and Pete Seeger will forgive me.
Which Side Are You On?
Which side are you on, girls?
Which side are you on?
Which side are you on, boys?
Which side are you on?
They say with Hillary and Barack,
There are no neutrals now.
You'll either be an Obama fan,
Or a thug for John McCain.
Which side are you on, boys?
Which side are you on?
Tell me, which side are you on, girls?
Which side are you on?
Obama's our party's man now,
And Hillary's got to fade,
But if you vote for John McCain,
You will kill Roe vee Wade.
Tell me, which side are you on?
Which side are you on?
Sing it! Which side are you on?
Which side are you on?
The Supremes call the shots,
The Pres names all'a them.
Will you really back a Court
Full'a Republicans?
Which side are you on?
Which side are you on?
Tell me, which side are you on?
Which side are you on?
There just ain't no middle ground,
In two thousand and eight;
You're either part'a the solution,
Or part'a the problem.
Tell me, which side are you on, Dems?
Which side are you on?
Tell me, which side are you on, Dems?
Which side are you on?
Are you really a true Democrat,
Or just a Clinton fan?
Should we get out of Iraq,
Or just invade Iran?
Which side are you on?
Which side are you on?
Tell me, which side are you on?
Which side are you on?
Chris Weigant blogs at: ChrisWeigant.com