Okay, so it’s not that Joe Hill – obviously – nor is it his famous namesake. Nope, just some random Joe Hill living in Kansas City. In fact, I don’t even think it’s Joe Hill, but rather the wife of Joe Hill, using a joint email account. (Ladies, wtf is up with that shit? Email accounts are free, ya know, and marriage vows don’t grant your husbands the right to monitor your personal correspondence. Nor do they strip you of your self identity, surname notwithstanding.)

Either way, seeing Joe Hill’s name in the pending members list immediately brought to mind Joan Baez’s performance of “I Dreamed I Saw Joe Hill Last Night” (itself a cover of Earl Robinson’s rendition of a 1930 poem by Alfred Hayes), immortalized in the Woodstock ’69 movie and soundtrack. Oh, how I loved that soundtrack! I bought the boxed set some time around 10th grade, and blasted it nonstop for damn near a year. That summer, I spent a good chunk of my vacation sanding a car my parents had recently acquired, so my father could paint it (gray, yuck). From sun up to sun down for weeks, I scrubbed rust from metal while immersing myself in the sounds of Woodstock. Good times.

Anyhow, back to Joe Hill. Born Joel Emmanuel Hägglund in Sweden circa 1879, Joe Hill immigrated to the U.S. in 1902, where he eventually embraced socialism and joined the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW, or the Wobblies). He worked as a labor organizer, political songwriter, satirical poet and activist. Hill was accused of a double murder in Salt Lake City in 1914 and was subsequently tried and executed for the crime. Hill’s guilt, as well fairness of his trial (which are two separate issues), has been questioned by both contemporaries and historians.

But that’s neither here nor there. As one Amazon reviewer commented (oh, how my wishlist continues to expand!), Baez’s song need not be true in order to be powerful – or, for that matter, need not be nonfiction in order to be true. The U.S. government has a long and continuing history of activist repression, and even if Hill was not framed for the murders, it’s not a huge leap to think that the government has committed similar injustices against other, lesser known activists. The spirit of the song is spot on.

I’ve included the lyrics below for those who can’t view the video – though you’ll miss Baez recount her then-husband’s arrest and incarceration for resisting the military draft. Both Baez and David Harris were reportedly vegetarians; according to the Google, Baez still is (oh, how my love for Baez continues to expand!).

Here’s a more recent performance of the song, from the Operation Ceasefire Concert in Washington, DC in 2005.
 

“Takes more than guns to kill a man”
Says Joe “I didn’t die”
Says Joe “I didn’t die”

Ideas don’t tremble in fear of thugs with badges and guns, or of capitalists with friends in high places. Ideas are bulletproof.

I Dreamed I Saw Joe Hill Last Night

I dreamed I saw Joe Hill last night,
alive as you and me.
Says I “But Joe, you’re ten years dead”
“I never died” said he,
“I never died” said he.

“The Copper Bosses killed you Joe,
they shot you Joe” says I.
“Takes more than guns to kill a man”
Says Joe “I didn’t die”
Says Joe “I didn’t die”

“In Salt Lake City, Joe,” says I,
Him standing by my bed,
“They framed you on a murder charge,”
Says Joe, “But I ain’t dead,”
Says Joe, “But I ain’t dead.”

And standing there as big as life
and smiling with his eyes.
Says Joe “What they can never kill
went on to organize,
went on to organize”

From San Diego up to Maine,
in every mine and mill,
Where working men defend their rights,
it’s there you’ll find Joe Hill,
it’s there you’ll find Joe Hill!

I dreamed I saw Joe Hill last night,
alive as you and me.
Says I “But Joe, you’re ten years dead”
“I never died” said he,
“I never died” said he.

————————

Tagged: music you tube video activism joan baez joe hill labor labor organizer activist repression woodstock video blogging

The Pretenders have gotten together with PETA and YouTube to put together a contest with a purpose.

We want Pretenders fans and animal lovers to create videos via YouTube and lipsync to the song “Boots of Chinese Plastic”! (And here’s the lyrics)

We also need you to show off your boots or shoes of plastic somewhere in the performance (this is key).

So fire up your YouTube account, click HERE to watch the video and show us what you got. Once you are done make sure you tag your video “bootsaudition” and you could win a fly away to Los Angeles to be in our Official Fan Video which will include some celebrity friends of PETA.

Chrissie Hynde announced the winner (as well as some notable runners-up) in the March ’09 Pretenders newsletter.

Hey John,

Congrats for being our choice. I love a man who is willing to drag an armchair behind him whilst dressed as a rabbit. And I loved your sensitive depiction of what P E T A is about and why we do what we do. Look forward to meeting up in L A.

We had a blast watching all the entrys. At least one guitar player I know is keen to hook up with the Vegan Goddess. I am thinking about learning to sing underwater. Glad to see some other broads my age are playing toy guitars and looking rough. Loved revisiting the English tube system for three minutes – felt right at home. Sorry to see that anyone is compelled to dress like me – always a fashion faux pas but made me laugh. Loved seeing my voice coming out of the mouth of a man – which probably is how it should have been in the first place. All in all it cheered me up to see so many takes and interpretations of the meaning of “Boots of Chinese Plastic”, but mostly glad to see so much support for the pride of my generation, The People For The Ethical Treatment of Animals.

Thank you all and I hope we get to meet up somewhere down the road.

Until then, Yours as always, Chrissie

If you could use a few minutes of mindless lolz, check out some of the videos after the jump (starting with the official Pretenders video). Or hop on over to You Tube – there are 19 videos currently tagged Boots of Chinese Plastic.

* Boots of Chinese Plastic

nam yo ho ren gay kyo — Buddah please
pity a humble little peasant who’s beggin’ on her knees
illusion fills my head like an empty can
I spent a million lifetimes loving the same man

chorus

every drop
that runs through the vein
always makes its way
back to the heart again
- and by the way you look fantastic
in your boots of Chinese plastic

Hari Krishna — Hari Rama too
Govinda I am still in love with you
I see you in the birds and in the trees
that’s why they call me ‘Krishna Mayi’

chorus

the prophet told us we should tolerate
the people and the things that make me want to hate
Allah have a little mixed mercy on me
to see some beauty in this human pageantry

Jesus Christ came down here as a living man
if he can live a life of virtue then I hope I can
do unto others as you would have returned
come back here and repeat until you’ve learned
learned learned

chorus

and every dog,
that’s lived his life on a chain
knows what it’s like
waiting for nothing

- and by the way you look fantastic
in your boots of Chinese plastic

——————–

Tagged: peta pretenders the pretenders boots of chinese plastic animals animal rights animal welfare video contest youtube video blogging Chrissie Hynde activism

Even though the song title is Happy Xmas (War Is Over), I’ve always fancied this more of an ode to the New Year – to starting over, blank slates, opportunities renewed. “Another year over, and a new one just begun.”

So here’s to another year of peace, love, compassion and activism.

And many, many thanks to all of you who have stopped by and (hopefully) taken action on behalf of the animals in 2008!

(Video via Cara @ The Curvature; incidentally, and even though it’s not at all related to animal advocacy, you should totally go check out her “Yoko Ono: A Feminist Analysis” series. Part Two is here, along with links back to previous posts.)

—————–

Tagged: animals animal rights animal welfare happy new year john lennon yoko ono happy xmas war is over pcrm ecard

In honor of a film about misogyny and the oppression of female sexuality, a few videos that celebrate female sexuality.

Empowerful!

(In order: Consolidated – You Suck; Salt-n-Pepa – Let’s Talk About Sex; and the Divinyls – I Touch Myself)

Previous editions:
Not-So-Random Friday Activist Music: It’s Friday! The 13th!
Not-So-Random Friday Activist Music: the things that they stood for
Not-So-Random Friday Activist Music: Unity of Oppression
Not-So-Random Friday Activist Music: DOG loves “appeasers”
Not-So-Random Friday Activist Music: Meat & Murder
Friday Activist Musak: Cursing the two-party system
Friday Activist Vlogging: Teh wimmins of cuntry (and clams, too!)
Friday Activist Vlogging: Stuff Honkies Heart
Friday Veggie Vlogging: What’s Your Cut?
Friday Veggie Vlogging (Zoop!)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”3fer” ed.)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”My Retro Boyfriend” ed.)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”You are what you eat” ed.)

(Crossposted.)

————————-

Tagged: friday veggie vlogging friday activist vlogging youtube music misogyny feminism teeth Consolidated You Suck Salt-n-Pepa Let’s Talk About Sex the Divinyls I Touch Myself sexuality empowerful

Previous editions:
Not-So-Random Friday Activist Music: the things that they stood for
Not-So-Random Friday Activist Music: Unity of Oppression
Not-So-Random Friday Activist Music: DOG loves “appeasers”
Not-So-Random Friday Activist Music: Meat & Murder
Friday Activist Musak: Cursing the two-party system
Friday Activist Vlogging: Teh wimmins of cuntry (and clams, too!)
Friday Activist Vlogging: Stuff Honkies Heart
Friday Veggie Vlogging: What’s Your Cut?
Friday Veggie Vlogging (Zoop!)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”3fer” ed.)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”My Retro Boyfriend” ed.)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”You are what you eat” ed.)

(Crossposted.)

————————-

Tagged: friday veggie vlogging friday activist vlogging youtube music horrorpops psychobilly psychobitches bitches

I so love this song, and it’s quite fitting for today.

The above versions are by Dion, Ray Charles and Marvin Gaye, in the order. A few more videos featuring Dion’s version are after the jump.

Previous editions:
Not-So-Random Friday Activist Music: Unity of Oppression
Not-So-Random Friday Activist Music: DOG loves “appeasers”
Not-So-Random Friday Activist Music: Meat & Murder
Friday Activist Musak: Cursing the two-party system
Friday Activist Vlogging: Teh wimmins of cuntry (and clams, too!)
Friday Activist Vlogging: Stuff Honkies Heart
Friday Veggie Vlogging: What’s Your Cut?
Friday Veggie Vlogging (Zoop!)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”3fer” ed.)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”My Retro Boyfriend” ed.)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”You are what you eat” ed.)

(Crossposted.)

———————-

Tagged: friday veggie vlogging friday activist vlogging youtube music dion marvin gaye Abraham, Martin and John abraham lincoln martin luther king, jr. mlk john f. kennedy robert kennedy robert f. kennedy bobby kennedy june 6 racism slavery politics ray charles rfk jfk jack kennedy

This pretty much speaks to how I’ve been feeling this week, especially in light of the pending Democratic party implosion. Can’t we all just get along?

(Crossposted.)

Previous editions:
Not-So-Random Friday Activist Music: DOG loves “appeasers”
Not-So-Random Friday Activist Music: Meat & Murder
Friday Activist Musak: Cursing the two-party system
Friday Activist Vlogging: Teh wimmins of cuntry (and clams, too!)
Friday Activist Vlogging: Stuff Honkies Heart
Friday Veggie Vlogging: What’s Your Cut?
Friday Veggie Vlogging (Zoop!)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”3fer” ed.)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”My Retro Boyfriend” ed.)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”You are what you eat” ed.)

———————-

Tagged: friday veggie vlogging friday activist vlogging youtube music animals animal rights animal welfare racism sexism homophobia misogyny consolidated the unity of oppression

While you’re out there soaking up the sun and Boca Burgers, remember:

On Memorial Day we’ll hear about men who gave their lives for their country, but many lives were not given, they were taken, and taken stupidly and carelessly. And there has been great public piety about those men and their “sacrifice” on the part of politicians who blithely sacrificed them.

Enjoy your three-day weekend.

Wur n Piece lolz after teh jump:

(Crossposted.)

Previous editions:
Not-So-Random Friday Activist Music: Meat & Murder
Friday Activist Musak: Cursing the two-party system
Friday Activist Vlogging: Teh wimmins of cuntry (and clams, too!)
Friday Activist Vlogging: Stuff Honkies Heart
Friday Veggie Vlogging: What’s Your Cut?
Friday Veggie Vlogging (Zoop!)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”3fer” ed.)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”My Retro Boyfriend” ed.)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”You are what you eat” ed.)

————————-

Tagged: friday veggie vlogging friday activist vlogging youtube memorial day support the troops war war on terra protest songs I-Feel-Like-I’m-Fixin’-to-Die Rag Country Joe McDonald Edwin Starr Anarchy in the UK Sex Pistols lolz lol cats lol dogs

And since these are both somewhat depressing choices, some loldogz after the jump. Smile, it be Friday, yo!

Previous editions:
Friday Activist Musak: Cursing the two-party system
Friday Activist Vlogging: Teh wimmins of cuntry (and clams, too!)
Friday Activist Vlogging: Stuff Honkies Heart
Friday Veggie Vlogging: What’s Your Cut?
Friday Veggie Vlogging (Zoop!)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”3fer” ed.)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”My Retro Boyfriend” ed.)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”You are what you eat” ed.)

(Crossposted.)

——————-

Tagged: friday veggie vlogging friday activist vlogging youtube Morrissey yje smiths meat is murder tori amos me and a gun rape misogyny speciesism lol lolz

Oh, and if you’re feeling generous and looking to shower me with birthday gifts, why don’t you send some cash BETA’s way? BETA = Beirut for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, and they could sure use it more than moi:

Hezbollah fighters, their guns blazing, seized control of west Beirut on Friday after three days of deadly street battles with pro-government foes pushed Lebanon dangerously close to all-out civil war.

Convoys of triumphant Shiite opposition gunmen firing into the air and flashing victory signs took to the streets after routing Sunni militants loyal to the Western-backed government of the divided nation.

As the fighting eased, the army and police moved across areas now in the hands of Iranian- and Syrian-backed opposition forces which have been locked in an 18-month power struggle with the ruling coalition.

Previous editions:
Friday Activist Vlogging: Teh wimmins of cuntry (and clams, too!)
Friday Activist Vlogging: Stuff Honkies Heart
Friday Veggie Vlogging: What’s Your Cut?
Friday Veggie Vlogging (Zoop!)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”3fer” ed.)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”My Retro Boyfriend” ed.)
Friday Veggie Vlogging (”You are what you eat” ed.)

(Crossposted.)

——————-

Tagged: friday veggie vlogging friday activist vlogging youtube spoon the underdog dennis kucinich