John L. Handcox (1904–1992) was a

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

-era

tenant farmer A tenant farmer is a farmer or farmworker who resides and works on land owned by a landlord, while tenant farming is an agricultural production system in which landowners contribute their land and often a measure of operating capital and ma ...

and union advocate from

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

known for his politically charged songs and

poetry Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

. Handcox is noted for playing a "vital role in bettering the lives of sharecroppers and energizing labor union organizers and members."''John L. Handcox: Songs, Poems, and Stories of the Southern Tenant Farmers.''

West Virginia University Press West Virginia University Press (WVU Press) is a university press and publisher in the state of West Virginia. A part of West Virginia University, the press publishes books and journals with a particular emphasis on Appalachian studies, history, hig ...

. Retrieved April 27, 2014.Cohen, Ronald D
"John L. Handcox: Songs, Poems, and Stories of the Southern Tenant Farmers Union (review)."

Journal of American Folklore The ''Journal of American Folklore'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal published by the American Folklore Society. The journal has been published since the society's founding in 1888. Since 2003, this has been published at the University of I ...

122.485 (2009): 363-364. Project MUSE. Retrieved April 27, 2014. Despite his brief career, many of his songs were so popular that they became standard folk songs themselves, and continue to be sung today.

Biography

Handcox was born February 5, 1904, in

Brinkley, Arkansas Brinkley is the most populous city in Monroe County, Arkansas, Monroe County, Arkansas, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 2,700, down from 3,188 in 2010 United States census, 2010. Located with ...

. As a child he admired the poetry of

Paul Laurence Dunbar Paul Laurence Dunbar (June 27, 1872 – February 9, 1906) was an American poet, novelist, and short story writer of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born in Dayton, Ohio, to parents who had been enslaved in Kentucky before the American C ...

, although he only attended school to the ninth grade. Handcox's father was a landowner, but they lost their property when he was crushed by a wagon.Koch, Stephen, and Max Brantley
"John L. Handcox rolls on."
''www.arkansastimes.com.'' Retrieved June 8, 2013. In 1935, Handcox joined the

Southern Tenant Farmers Union The Southern Tenant Farmers Union (STFU), later known as the National Farm Labor Union, the National Agricultural Workers Union, and the Agricultural and Allied Workers Union, was founded as a civil farmer's trade union, union to organize tenant ...

and began writing songs and poetry to rally the group's members. Two years later,

Charles Seeger Charles Louis Seeger Jr. (December 14, 1886 – February 7, 1979) was an American musicologist, composer, teacher, and folklorist. He was the husband of the composer Ruth Crawford Seeger, father of the American folk singers Pete Seeger (1919– ...

and Sidney Robertson recorded him for the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

. His songs were later promoted by fellow protest songsters,

Pete Seeger Peter Seeger (May 3, 1919 – January 27, 2014) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and social activist. He was a fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s and had a string of hit records in the early 1950s as a member of The Weav ...

Woody Guthrie Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer, songwriter, and composer widely considered to be one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American Left, A ...

, and

Joe Glazer Joseph Glazer (June 19, 1918 – September 19, 2006) was an American folk musician who recorded more than thirty albums over the course of his career. He was closely associated with labor unions and often referred to as "labor's troubadour" ...

. After disappearing from the public eye for almost forty years, Handcox emerged in the 1980s for the 50th anniversary celebration of the STFU in

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Mem ...

. In 1984, he composed two songs criticizing the presidency of

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...

. On January 31, 1992, Handcox was honored at a Tribute at the

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Labor Council headquarters. Musicians

and

accompanied Handcox in performing "Roll the Union On." In November 2013 Michael Honey, a professor at the

University of Washington Tacoma University of Washington Tacoma (UW Tacoma) is a campus of the University of Washington, located in Tacoma, Washington, United States. The UW Tacoma campus opened its first classrooms in repurposed warehouses in downtown Tacoma in 1990 and opene ...

published a biography of Handcox's life, titled ''Sharecropper's Troubador: John L. Handcox, the Southern Tenant Farmer's Union, and the African American Song Tradition.''Kelley, Peter
"Sharecropper's Troubador: The life of singer, union organizer John Handcox."
''www.washington.edu'', January 7, 2014. Retrieved April 27, 2014. Honey was introduced to Handcox by Pete Seeger in 1985 and he recorded and interviewed him at the Library of Congress that same year. Two of Handcox's songs are used as the titles of books by the co-founder of the Southern Tenant Farmers Union, H. L. Mitchell: Mitchell's autobiography, ''Mean Things Happening In This Land'' (which includes three of Handcox's song lyrics in an appendix), and ''Roll the Union On: A Pictorial History of the Southern Tenant Farmers' Union''.

Recordings

''John L. Handcox: Songs, Poems & Stories of the Southern Tenant Farmers Union (

West Virginia University West Virginia University (WVU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Morgantown, West Virginia, United States. Its other campuses are those of the West Virginia University Ins ...

Sound Archive, 2004)'' *"Raggedy, Raggedy Are We" *"No More Mourning" *"Mean Things" *"Planter and The Sharecropper" *"Landlord, What In the Heaven Is The Matter With You?" *"In My Heart" *"Join The Union Tonight" *"Roll The Union On" *"Strike In Arkansas" *"Oh No, We Don't Want Reagan Anymore" *"Let's Get Reagan Out" *"I Live On" * Interview with Joe Glazer recorded at the Library of Congress in 1985 ''Songs for Political Action: Folk Music, Topical Songs and the American Left (Bear Family Records, 1996)'' *"Raggedy, Raggedy Are We" *"No More Mourning" *"Join The Union Tonight" *"There Is Mean Things Happening in this Land"

Books about John Handcox

* John Marsh (editor). ''You Work Tomorrow: An Anthology of American Labor Poetry, 1929-41.''

Ann Arbor, Michigan Ann Arbor is a city in Washtenaw County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851, making it the List of municipalities in Michigan, fifth-most populous cit ...

University of Michigan Press The University of Michigan Press is a university press that is a part of Michigan Publishing at the University of Michigan Library. It publishes 170 new titles each year in the humanities and social sciences. Titles from the press have earn ...

, 2007. . (Contains John Handcox poems "The Planter and the Sharecropper", "Landlord, What in the Heaven is the Matter with You?", and "The Union Song.") * Michael Honey. ''Sharecropper's Troubadour: John L. Handcox, the Southern Tenant Farmers' Union, and the African American Song Tradition.''

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, 2013. .

References

External links

Video of Pete Seeger, Joe Glazer and John Handcox performing "Roll the Union On"

Pacific Northwest Labor History Association Records.
1971-1995. 1.83 cubic feet (3 boxes). At the Labor Archives of Washington, University of Washington Libraries Special Collections.
San Diego & Imperial Counties Labor Council, AFL-CIO.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Handcox, John L 1904 births 1992 deaths Songwriters from Arkansas African-American songwriters 20th-century American poets African-American poets Southern Tenant Farmers Union people 20th-century African-American writers 20th-century American songwriters