Woody Guthrie comes to Salford
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Version 0 of 1. Folk legend Woody Guthrie, an American academic working in Preston, an <em>avant garde </em>art centre, the Working Class Movement Library in Salford… ...an unusual combination, but we are living through unprecedented times and all kinds of alliances and coalitions are finding common cause. The Working Class Movement library was founded by life-long communists, Ruth and Eddie Frow. Funded by a mixture of sources including Salford council, the trade union and labour movement and individuals, it is a treasury of books, pamphlets and ephemera documenting the lives of working people. It is an important resource for all kinds of users; from individuals studying their own history to students, and filmmakers such as Ken Loach. But it is now facing cuts to its funding as Salford council reduces spending and supporters are being asked to help fundraise to keep it going. This matters. As Ken Loach said earlier this year: Our history is very important. It's where our strength comes from and is not reflected in the mass media. This library is a very important institution. Library Trustee Royston Futter explains the latest initiative - a collaboration with the local arts and music centre Islington Mill to host a fundraiser. The move follows an earlier get-together: in 2010 artists from the Mill created art from the WCML collection resulting in a joint exhibition called <em>Object Lessons</em>. Both benefit, says Royston: The people who run and use the Mill are young, but they are our sort of people. They are interested in our events and want to be part of them. We want to encourage more young people to get involved and it is essential to the future of the collection. Islington Mill is a former cotton spinning mill dating back to the early 19th century. Based in Salford, but on the edge of Manchester city centre, it is home to 50 artists, two art galleries, a recording studio and a club space. <br />Enter the American link in my introduction: Will Kaufman, an academic 'in exile' in Preston who is both a musician and an expert on Woody Guthrie. He sees the great singer as a role model for these times of austerity. Woody sings for the 99%, he is the father of modern protest and used his music as a political weapon. It was in 2006 that Will felt that he wanted to provide an alternative American voice to that of George Bush and as part of this process, he started to research the life and music of Guthrie. He produced a political biography of the singer in 2010, and then devised a show of film and songs further documenting his life. This has proved popular, not just in university halls but at Glastonbury and a a series of literature and folk festivals in the UK and the USA. Next Sunday, Will will perform it at Islington Mill as a fundraiser for the Working Class Movement Library. He says: The library is an important institution. Like Woody, it's anti-commercial. And, like Woody's music, is appropriate for today. Royston agrees: Our founders Ruth and Eddie were driven by the belief that working people should remember and value their own history. Together they rescued countless items which would have otherwise been lost to the future. In these turbulent times that history has never been more relevant - and the survival of the library will depend on the generosity of our supporters. This year is the centenary of Woody Guthrie's birth, which makes the exercise that bit more appropriate. As he said himself: I am out to sing the songs that make you take pride in yourself and in your work. <em><strong>Bernadette Hyland</strong> is a freelance writer and blogger. She is active in her trade union, Unite and volunteers at the Working Class Movement Library.</em> |