If you grew up in the American school system, it's almost guaranteed you were branded with the song “This Land Is Your Land.” Many American children were brought up on the idea Woody Guthrie-anthem reflected the idea our nation was one big happy melting pot that gave equal opportunity to everyone. For me, that song brings back memories of learning how well the pilgrims treated Native Americans (they didn’t) and just how great of a guy Christopher Columbus was (he wasn’t).
The only problem is that notion is entirely false. In fact, “This Land Is Your Land” has been called everything from an alternative national anthem to a Marxist anti-anthem; but the simple truth is it’s super punk, perhaps even the first punk song in contemporary American music history.
When Guthrie wrote “This Land Is Your Land” things were not going so great for America, we were still on the tail end of the Great Depression and we were about to enter a massive war. Guthrie was pretty sick and tired of hearing Kate Smith’s delusional patriotic hit “God Bless America” dominate the radio all day long. So tired, in fact, that he originally titled “This Land Is Your Land” as “God Blessed America For Me.” How punk is that? The song was actually written with the purpose of criticizing “God Bless America.” But it gets even better.
While the version we know today wouldn’t be released until 1951, Guthrie began writing it in 1940, and it originally included lyrics that gave a pretty harsh social commentary on the state of American in the late 1930s.
The first verse that’s been redacted from the version we learn as children went:
“There was a big high wall there that tried to stop me. / The sign was painted, said 'Private Property.' / But on the backside, it didn't say nothing. / This land was made for you and me.”
When contemplating what the meaning behind this verse truly is, if you consider it’s been wiped from the popular version, it’s easy to see Guthrie was saying something critical here. This verse was perhaps intended to touch on the classism and uneven distribution of wealth that ran so rampant in early 20th century America. He’s pointing out how so many had lost access to the riches of a country that truly belonged to all of us. While the rich kept the poor away, they enjoyed free access to whatever they desired, hence the sign only saying “Private Property” on the side being read by Guthrie.
In his next lost verse, it’s pretty indisputable what message Guthrie was driving home:
“One bright sunny morning in the shadow of the steeple, / by the relief office I saw my people. / As they stood hungry, / I stood there wondering if God blessed America for me.”
Guthrie spent a great deal of time traveling and learning from those who had lost everything to the Dust Bowl, and, in the 1930s, our government wasn’t hesitant to let those people starve. President Herbert Hoover had simply taken a hands-off approach to the economic and environmental tragedies that ravaged America, and that's clearly what Guthrie is criticizing here in true counterculture fashion. Watching his people beg outside a relief office that had no relief to give clearly made Guthrie feel certain ways about the nation he called home.
The last line truly solidifies the idea that there’s something punk about this song. By saying “I stood there wondering if God blessed America for me,” he’s directly addressing the hypocrisy of “God Bless America.” He is asking if God truly did bless America the way the hit song championed it did, then why was so much going wrong? If God blessed America for everyone, why were his people starving while the rich and powerful did nothing?
The song we are bred to know by heart originally had a lot to say about our nation. In its final form, it can still include deeper undertones about race, religion and who this country truly belongs to. There’s no denying the loss of these verses takes some of the punch out of it.
Why the original version was lost could be attributed to the mindless nationalism and anti-communist attacks on art of the 1950s, but, regardless of the reason, “This Land Is Your Land” had just as much to say about those in power as any punk rock classic does.
Noah Wright is an undecided sophomore studying at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of the columnists do not reflect those of The Post. Want to talk to Noah? Tweet him @NoahCampaign.
