
I’ve got to put the state of Florida on BLAST! And I feel bad about it because quite a few of my HickTowners live in Florida and I stay on Florida’s back so much with all those rabid “ministers” that they have.
Were you all aware of the fact that “Swanee River” was still the official state song of Florida? Check out the lyrics:
Written by Stephen C. Foster
Way down upon de Swanee Ribber,
Far, far away,
Dere’s wha my heart is turning ebber,
Dere’s wha de old folks stay.
All up and down de whole creation
Sadly I roam,
Still longing for de old plantation,
And for de old folks at home.
Chorus
All de world am sad and dreary,
Eb-rywhere I roam;
Oh, darkeys, how my heart grows weary,
Far from de old folks at home!
2nd verse
All round de little farm I wandered
When I was young,
Den many happy days I squandered,
Many de songs I sung.
When I was playing wid my brudder
Happy was I;
Oh, take me to my kind old mudder!
Dere let me live and die.
3rd Verse
One little hut among de bushes,
One dat I love
Still sadly to my memory rushes,
No matter where I rove.
When will I see de bees a-humming
All round de comb?
When will I hear de banjo strumming,
Down in my good old home?
PRESS HERE to hear it being sang by an opera singer and check out how comfortably that heifer uses the term “darkie”.
And check out the ignorant, mocking ebonics/slave language that is used throughout the song. It actually scares me to think of how obsessed those vulgar dogs were and still are with blacks. Can you imagine sitting down writing a song and calling people “ole darkies”? Whew!
Well Florida is at least attempting to get rid of that racist garbage and replace it with an appropriate state song. It’s about time, huh?
When it comes to the state song, it looks like Florida lawmakers and Floridians will still be singing the same tune. Gov. Charlie Crist won’t be humming along, however.
After spending over a year trying to come up with a new song to replace the Stephen Foster classic “Swanee River,” which had lyrics some found racist, Florida politicians are expected to keep the song but update its lyrics _ if they do anything at all.
The song, also known as “Old Folks at Home,” would remain the state’s official song. As a compromise, a song chosen in a statewide contest _ “Florida - Where the Sawgrass Meets the Sky” _ will be added as the state’s anthem. Tallahassee attorney Pace Allen lobbied to keep Foster’s famous song, saying that throwing it out was “excessive.” “Let’s build on our history,” he said.
Crist, however, considers that history offensive to some and wanted a new song.
“I didn’t have it played at my inauguration for a reason,” Crist said this week, disappointed with the compromise reached by lawmakers to update the song and add an anthem. Crist said the agreement made the state look “confused.”
Lawmakers may not take up the compromise, however. The House might not even get to its bill (HB 825) and Sen. Jim King, a Jacksonville Republican who worked out the compromise in the Senate, said some lawmakers are worried they would look frivolous for debating on the state song while more pressing problems like budget cuts loom.
Keeping the song as it has been for 73 years does present a problem. As originally written, the song mentions of “de old plantation” and “de banjo strumming” in a dialect that mocks blacks in the Old South. When the song is sung at state functions, however, lines like “Oh, darkeys, how my heart grows weary” are changed to “Oh, brothers, how my heart grows weary.”
Some wording was altered by the education department in the mid-1970’s to eliminate offensive lyrics when sung in public schools, but the words have never been officially changed.
“What most people remember is the melody,” said State Sen. Steve Oelrich, whose district includes parts of the Suwanee River. “I’m perfectly willing to change whatever language might be offensive.”
Some people just don’t “get it”. How can the lyrics be changed when in fact the entire song needs to be gotten rid of? Can you imagine a racist song that attacks and insults Jews being allowed to stand with a few changed lyrics? Florida had better rid themselves of that mess!
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