Labor Day, a Banjo and a Boy Named Pete

There was once a boy named Pete who loved to sing and play the ukulele. Pete learned folk music as a young child. His family traveled around the country to bring classical music to farmers in rural areas who couldn’t afford to enjoy it in the city. 

Pete’s parents taught him the power that music held. He grew up to play the banjo and become a famous folk artist. When he realized he had a big audience, he used his music to fight against capitalism, protest sweatshop labor around the world and become a Civil Rights activist.

In the 1940s, Pete formed The Almanac Singers with Woodie Guthrie and traveled around the country, singing songs that were rally cries for the labor movement. 

A girl named Florence wrote a labor hymn called “Which Side Are you On,” but it didn’t get much attention because she was a girl. Pete used his voice to share her important message. His band, The Almanac Singers recorded the song and sang it in union halls and picket lines across the country.

Pete felt strongly about his beliefs and was loud about them. He was even blacklisted by the United States for a short time, forcing him to cancel tour dates and give up a recording contract.

Later on, he met a girl named Zilphia who taught him a song she had written. He adapted and popularized the song that become an anthem for the Civil Rights movement— “We Shall Overcome."

In 1965, Rev. Martin Luther King asked Pete to join a Civil Rights march against Jim Crow segregation. Pete showed up to empower protesters along with Odetta, Nina Simone,  Ella Fitzgerald, and other musicians. 

But he didn’t just sing for the protesters. Pete visited their tents and sat at their campfires. He wrote down their words and used his voice in case their voices weren't loud enough.

Pete believed that music had the power to unite people on opposing political sides. He saw that most people were not willing to talk with others they strongly disagreed with. This is the story of the legendary folk singer Pete Seeger.

Every minute of today, someone in the world is humming one of his songs. This is just a little bit of the history behind his words. 

Pete was a Mover, Shaker and Music maker. He spent his entire career helping the underdogs, supporting the labor movement, fighting for racial equality and fair treatment in the workplace.

As you celebrate Labor Day with your families and friends, celebrate to the tunes of Pete Seeger, and his old bandmate Woodie Guthrie.

Learn more about Pete, his music and his movement with the illustrated children’s book — The Golden Thread: a Song for Pete Seeger

“If there’s something wrong, speak up!”

— PETE SEEGER