Introduction
The political work accomplished by Billie Holiday is manifested in the fact that the performance was designed to address the hate and racism, which was prevalent during that time. Many people preferred to ignore such messages and were more adherent to the universal and neutral songs. However, Holiday was highly persistent in spreading the message, even if it meant that she would be hit by harsh criticism. Her overall obsession with the mission of addressing these issues resulted in major changes in the American popular culture, where the latter begins to contain the critical aspects of resistance and protest. This allowed artists and performers not only to entertain the public but also to raise the key problems of society.
At first glance, the United States seems to be a relatively monolithic country, but many problems, ethnic, religious, social, and racial contradictions lie in its depths. Using the example of the modern United States, one can see how these moods manifest themselves in the current political situation.
The racial issue has always occupied a central place in American history. A modern melting pot cannot exist without conflict. The more contacts occur between groups and not only ethnic ones, the more differences between these groups, the stronger the conflict. With the abolition of slavery, racism has not disappeared, but only changed its form in the form of segregation. Officially, racial discrimination was entrenched with the abolition of slavery with the adoption of an amendment to the US Constitution. American society is divided into whites and people of a different color. Schools, public transport, various social sectors were divided by skin color.
The song of Angela Davis
Moreover, it is important to note that Billie Holiday can be considered as one of the pioneers of such change. Angela Y. Davis states: “Her use of this work in her career helped dismantle the opposition, firmly entrenched until she sings of this song, between fame and commercial success on the one hand and social consciousness in music on the other”. This means that the performer was able to significantly advance the African American community’s interests of acquiring their rights and freedom in the face of racism. In addition, the song increased the recognition of the horrors of lynching, which resulted in the deaths of many Black people.
The author writes: “During the preceding decade – the Depression years – public consciousness regarding lynching grew even as the numbers of lynching victims began to decline”. The latter statement can be fully or partially considered as the result of Billie Holiday’s work, which raised the public’s awareness of these mob attacks on African American people. Therefore, more and more individuals were starting to recognize the issue of lynching, which allowed the protests of the black community to progress.
The overall political impact of the song did not stop at increased awareness but lead to changes at the legislative level. Although the major changes were only implemented afterward, the performance started the cascade mechanism, which opened a path for fundamental shifts in the government. It is important to note the fact that law enforcement assisted the lynching instead of preventing them.
It is stated: “Officers would routinely leave a black inmate’s jail cell unguarded after rumors of a lynching began to circulate to allow for a mob to kill them before any trial or legal defense could take place”. This shows that such horrific occurrences were propagated on the institutional level, where official representatives were the major element of mob attacks. Therefore, the song boosted the advancements of the protests led by black activists because it perfectly translated the message.
Furthermore, the song was highly influential due to its dual nature, where it describes the negative and dark ramifications of lynching alongside the positive connotation of nature. It does not directly address the issue of racism, which would not be effective, but approaches the problem in a subtle manner, where the consequences of lynching are demonstrated gradually. This can be a primary determining factor of the song’s overall success as a way of raising awareness.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it highly important to understand that Billie Holiday’s song was a major contributor to the African American community movement. It allowed addressing the issue of racism and lynching among the main population through her performance. Although she was stroke by heavy criticism and denial of the facts by her counterparties, she was able to spread the message effectively. The public of her time preferred mostly universal and non-controversial performances, especially from black artists, but Billie Holiday was persistent in staying on her mission. This resulted in substantial changes in popular culture, where she was a pioneer of integrating the element of protest and resistance in the performances.
The song gave a boost and additional stimulus for African American activists to advance further in their work and efforts to gain their rights for freedom and equality. The song also initiated changes in the legislative arena, where government officials were no longer able to continue to deny lynching incidents. The involvement of law enforcement in these mob attacks meant that racism was embedded in its institutional form of racism.
References
Davis, Angela Y. “Strange Fruit.” In Blue Legacies and Black Feminism, edited by Angela Y. Davis, 180-197. New York: Pantheon Books, 1998.
Lartey, Jamiles, and Sam Morris. “How White Americans Used Lynchings to Terrorize and Control Black People.” The Guardian, 2018. Web.