American music and American protest literature

Title from first page of PDF file (viewed November 29, 2010)Includes bibliographical references (p. 133-141)In the 1960s and 1970s, a significant antiwar movement rose in the United States in protest of the Vietnam War. Like all protest movements in American history, the antiwar movement of this era had its own protest literature. Protest literature is essential for protest movements to get their message to potential followers of their movement. This paper argues that the most effective type of protest literature was antiwar music. Musical protest reached huge numbers of people, particularly those young Americans who were eligible for the draft and had a personal stake in protesting the Vietnam War Based on the popularity of songs with clear antiwar messages, it can be ascertained that the music reached huge numbers of people. Many written records of the time also state the importance of the music to the antiwar movement. Some of those writers included members of the antiwar movement, critics of the same movement, journalists, governmental leaders, and others. The conclusion reached is that it was the music of the era that led to the expansion and increased influence of the antiwar movement