Singing What We Cannot Speak
Bernice Johnson Reagon's songtalking and popular education
“I sang and heard the freedom songs and saw them pull together sections of the Black community at times when other means of communication were ineffective.” - Bernice Johnson Reagon
One of my heroes died this week - Bernice Johnson Reagon. If you don’t know her, you should. She was a celebrated musician, singer, civil rights activist, professor, and cultural historian. She used music as a form of activism and wrote freedom songs that inspired generations of young people during the civil rights movement. She also founded the SNCC Freedom Singers and the acapella music group Sweet Honey in the Rock. (For a deeper dive on her work, please read any one of the published obituaries: New York Times, Washington Post, NPR ).
Bernice called what she did “songtalking”. She writes:
“These days, I come as a ‘songtalker,’ one who balances talk and song in the creation of a live performance conversation with those who gather within the sound of my voice. As a student leader and activist in the Albany Movement, I sang and stood in the sound of the congregational singing of the freedom songs charging the air we breathed. For the first time, I understood how the singing not only pulled us together but became our articulate collective testimony to all who stood within the sound.”
Bernice’s body of work is the archetype for cultural work that draws on stories to shift the world.
I had the good fortune of meeting her at the 75th anniversary of Highlander Research and Education Center. I sat next to her during a meal, and she proceeded to share some words about purpose-driven work and the role that artists play. I listened intently, drinking her wisdom. I was at a crossroads in my own life and wasn’t sure which path I should take. She looked at me and asked a question: “Do you know how you will know?”
I shook my head.
“When you are on the right path, it’s like you have a target on your back and you will get hit. When you fall, that’s how you will know you are on the right path.”
I let her words sink. I couldn’t fully appreciate what she meant until I got older. But with each passing year, the truth in her words rings deeper and deeper. I always hold it close.
The work we are all called to do may not endanger our lives, like her work did with the civil rights movement, but the broader point is expecting to fall as part of your work shifts your frame of reference. When you experience the negative consequences that come with unsettling the status quo, taking it as a sign to keep going helps you not be overwhelmed by it.
Her words also remind me that changing dominant harmful narratives is work that is in lineage with so many that came before. No one does this work alone. In the finite years we have on this Earth, all we have to do is run our part of the race and pass the baton on. The rest is the rest. This perspective helps release the pressure we can all put on ourselves to do more than we are supposed to be doing.
The amount of wisdom Bernice imparted in my very brief encounter with her led me to dig deeper into the tradition of popular education that her body of work is rooted in. “Popular education” isn’t a term we often use nowadays but it is certainly the progenitor to the field of narrative change, maybe even the progenitor.
Popular education, as developed by Paolo Freire, has profoundly impacted educational theories and social change practices worldwide. Freire, a Brazilian educator and philosopher, is best known for his seminal work, "Pedagogy of the Oppressed" (1970). In this book, Freire critiques traditional education systems, which he describes as "banking education" – a model where the teacher deposits information into passive students. Instead, Freire advocates for a dialogical approach where education is a collaborative process. He emphasizes the importance of "conscientization," or developing a critical awareness of one’s social reality through reflection and action. This process involves a continuous cycle of learning, reflection, and action, empowering learners to challenge and change oppressive structures.
Freire's methodology, characterized by a participatory approach that emphasizes dialogue and critical thinking, seeks to empower marginalized communities by encouraging them to question and transform their social realities. This educational philosophy, often referred to as "critical pedagogy," intersects significantly with the work of Myles Horton and the Highlander Education and Research Center, where I met Bernice.
Myles Horton, an American educator and social activist, founded the Highlander Folk School (now the Highlander Research and Education Center) in Tennessee in 1932. Inspired by the Danish folk school movement, Horton envisioned Highlander as a place where ordinary people could come together to learn, share experiences, and strategize for social change. Highlander became a vital training ground for labor organizers, civil rights activists, and community leaders.
Horton's approach to education is closely aligned with Freire's principles. He believed in education that was deeply rooted in the needs and experiences of the people. At Highlander, learning was not confined to classrooms but took place through discussions, workshops, and participatory activities. Horton emphasized the importance of critical thinking and collective problem-solving, encouraging participants to question and address social injustices.
The civil rights movement in the United States provides a powerful example of how popular education can drive narrative change. Highlander played a crucial role in this movement by offering a space where activists could gather, learn from each other, and plan strategies. Notable figures such as Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., and John Lewis attended workshops at Highlander, where they honed their skills and deepened their commitment to the struggle for racial equality.
One of the most significant contributions of Highlander to the civil rights movement was the Citizenship Schools program. This initiative, spearheaded by Septima Clark and developed at Highlander, aimed to teach literacy and civic skills to African Americans in the South. The program’s goal was to enable African Americans to pass literacy tests required for voting, thereby challenging the systematic disenfranchisement of Black voters. Citizenship Schools combined basic literacy education with discussions about civil rights, empowering participants to become informed and active citizens.
Highlander’s approach to education emphasized the interconnectedness of knowledge and action. By fostering a sense of agency and community among learners, Highlander helped build a foundation for the grassroots activism that defined the civil rights movement. The center's methodology mirrored Freire's emphasis on dialogue and critical consciousness, demonstrating the transformative power of education.
Highlander Research and Education Center defines popular education as: “the process of bringing people together to share their lived experiences and build collective knowledge.” The strength of popular education lies in the way it centers lived experience, and the starting point is always people’s life stories.
Highlander’s model of popular education has deeply informed my own process as an educator and the pedagogy I bring to the workshops I lead. Highlander’s spiral model of learning represents a cyclical and iterative approach to learning, where participants continuously move through a process of reflection, analysis, action, and further reflection. It emphasizes that education is not a linear process but a dynamic and ongoing cycle that adapts to the learners' experiences and contexts.
Key aspects of the spiral model of popular education are:
Reflection on Experience: The process begins with participants reflecting on their own experiences. This reflection helps to identify the issues and challenges they face in their communities or workplaces.
Analysis: After reflecting on their experiences, participants analyze the root causes of the issues. This step involves critical thinking and understanding the social, political, and economic contexts that contribute to these challenges.
Action: Based on their analysis, participants develop and implement strategies to address the identified issues. This action is collaborative and aims to bring about social change.
Further Reflection: Following the action, participants engage in further reflection to evaluate the outcomes and processes. This reflection helps to assess what worked, what didn't, and why, thus feeding back into the cycle for continuous improvement.
This model lays out a 4-part process for anyone to use in their own lives. (For a deeper dive on the spiral model of popular education check out Rural Support Partners adapted graphic).
By continuously engaging in this cyclical process, individuals and communities can foster a deeper understanding of their realities and develop more effective strategies for change. This iterative approach not only strengthens problem-solving skills but also promotes resilience and adaptability. Through ongoing reflection, analysis, action, and further reflection, participants are empowered to create lasting social impact in their own lives in a dynamic and responsive manner.
Bernice’s passing is a reminder that the roots of narrative change work in America has a long history. Her body of work as an activist and scholar utilized music as a powerful tool for social change, incorporating historical narratives and cultural traditions into her songs that often defied conventional speech. Bernices's approach exemplifies how art fills in where logic trails off as a medium for expression and education about lived experience.
Originally published in The Fragile Real. Reprinted with permission from the author.
