His poem, set to the tune of an English drinking song, has been rife with controversy from the beginning.
Wood Engraving, accessed Library of Congress. He personally supported the idea of black people “returning to Africa” if they were freed from slavery. While he viewed slavery as sinful (despite owning slaves himself at various points in his life), he was an anti-abolitionist who also at times upheld slaveholder rights.
#Who made the star spangled banner song professional#
Certainly, he could not have predicted black football players taking a knee during his now musical poem prior to a professional football game, for one, because Key could not envision an America where black people lived free. It seems unlikely that during the War of 1812, when Francis Scott Key penned the poem that would later become our national anthem, he could have foreseen the controversy over the song that would occur centuries later. But what about when it comes to our actual national anthem, “The Star Spangled Banner”? Original manuscript, Francis Scott Key, “Star Spangled Banner,” accesssed Library of Congress.
Frederick Douglass wrote in his autobiography Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, “The songs of the slave represent the sorrows of his heart and he is relieved by them, only as an aching heart is relieved by its tears.” Similarly, music has been instrumental in a variety of modern 20 th century movements such as the freedom songs of the Civil Rights Movement and feminist anthems of the Women’s Movement. Slave spirituals were key to enduring the brutality of slave life and provided not only relief but also coded communication. Music has long played a vital role in not only American history but also American activism. Indianapolis Men’s Chorus Singing for Indy Pride 1992, Photo courtesy of Indiana Historical Society.
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