Matthew Jones (September 17, 1936 – March 30, 2011) was an African-American folk singer/songwriter known for being a
field secretary of the
Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and part of their
The Freedom Singers in the 1960s.
Civil Rights Movement
Matthew Jones was a schooled, experienced musician, and became active in the
Civil Rights Movement
The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...
when he joined the
Nashville Student Movement
The Nashville Student Movement was an organization that challenged racial segregation in Nashville, Tennessee during the Civil Rights Movement. It was created during workshops in nonviolence taught by James Lawson. The students from this org ...
in 1960. Jones was an outspoken participant in the movement in
Danville, Virginia
Danville is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States, located in the Southside Virginia region and on the fall line of the Dan River. It was a center of tobacco production and was an area of Confederate activity ...
, where he organized another vocal group, the Danville Freedom Voices, in 1963.
Jones relocated to
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...
, with his brother Marshall, who was also affiliated with the
SNCC
The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC, often pronounced ) was the principal channel of student commitment in the United States to the civil rights movement during the 1960s. Emerging in 1960 from the student-led sit-ins at segreg ...
and their music ensemble, the Freedom Singers.
Matthew Jones faced down the
Ku Klux Klan on many occasions and endured 29 arrests during the Civil Rights Movement. His experiences developed him into a "
freedom singer" in the most literal manner.
"I don't think of myself as a cultural worker," Jones said. "I am a freedom singer; a freedom fighter. I've always been a freedom fighter; I'll probably go down that way, too. Freedom songs are different than other protest songs because they are really a
mantra
A mantra ( Pali: ''manta'') or mantram (मन्त्रम्) is a sacred utterance, a numinous sound, a syllable, word or phonemes, or group of words in Sanskrit, Pali and other languages believed by practitioners to have religious, ...
. The use of repetition allows for the message to be understood. If we sing a powerful statement enough times in a song, like 'This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine,' then we can internalize it".
Later life
Matthew Jones performed his repertoire around the world, including alongside terrorists in
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
.
During the
Anti-Vietnam War movement he recorded a 45-rpm record, "Hell No, We Ain't Gonna Go" backed on the other side with "Super Sam."
At each performance, Jones included "The Freedom Chant," an affirmation he based on a famous quote by
Fannie Lou Hamer
Fannie Lou Hamer (; Townsend; October 6, 1917 – March 14, 1977) was an American voting and women's rights activist, community organizer, and a leader in the civil rights movement. She was the co-founder and vice-chair of the Freedom De ...
and his own many years of direct action.
"I'm sick and tired
of being sick and tired.
I will not allow anybody
at any time
to violate my mind or my body
in any shape, form or fashion.
If they do,
they'll have to deal with ME immediately!
Freedom! Freedom! Freedom!"
After nearly a year of deteriorating health, Jones died in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
on March 30, 2011.
Matt Jones recording
''Matt Jones Then and Now'', Relevant Records
*SIDE A
# Freedom Road
# Uncle Tom's Prayer
# Freedom Medley
# Medgar Evers
# Legend of Danville
# Demonstrating G.I.
# Avon Rollins
* SIDE B
# Oginga Odinga
# Brother That Ain't Good
# It's Like A Wheel
# Nuclear Reactor
# Tree of Life
References
External links
SNCC Digital Gateway: Matt Jones Documentary website created by the SNCC Legacy Project and Duke University, telling the story of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee & grassroots organizing from the inside-out
American folk singers
American activists
1936 births
2011 deaths
African-American activists
Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee
21st-century African-American people
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