Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Woody Guthrie's Family Slams 'Insurrectionist' Josh Hawley For Co-Opting Folk Singer's Lyrics

Woody Guthrie; Josh Hawley
John Springer Collection/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images; Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

The GOP Sen. introduced the 'This Land Is Our Land Act' to prevent people associated with the Chinese Communist Party from owning farmland in the U.S.

The family of the late folk singer and songwriter Woody Guthrie criticized Missouri Republican Senator Josh Hawley for co-opting the lyrics to "This Land Is Your Land," long considered one of the greatest folk songs ever written.

Guthrie's family spoke out after Hawley introduced the This Land Is Our Land Act to prevent people associated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from owning farmland in the United States.


Guthrie's music was often political and he wrote "This Land is Your Land" in critical response to Irving Berlin's "God Bless America," which has long been associated with White Christian nationalism and their belief in American exceptionalism.

Guthrie viewed music as a means of protest.

He was associated with communist groups and over the course of his life became increasingly critical of American capitalism, which he blamed for many injustices.

His daughter, Nora Guthrie suggested Hawley's use of the song is inappropriate because it doesn't align with the song's political values, which stress the importance of democratic representation.

In an e-mail to The Kansas City Star, she wrote:

“In this particular case, the co-opting or parodying of the lyric by those not aligned with Woody’s lyrics - i.e. misrepresentation by autocrats, racists, white nationalists, anti-labor, insurrectionists, etc. - is not condoned."
“We do not consider Josh Hawley in any way a representative of Woody’s values therefore we would never endorse or approve of his reference to Woody’s lyrics.”

Nora Guthrie went on to say that the song is "more of a vision of democracy" which "simply reiterates the concept, ‘By the people, for the people.’”

In response, Hawley’s spokeswoman, Abigail Marone, criticized The Star for its coverage of Hawley's bill and said the focus should be on its contents and not its title.

The Kansas City Star is where journalism goes to die. Josh’s bill protects America’s food chain, farmers, and national security - that’s the real story The Star should cover.”

Many have criticized Hawley and praised Guthrie's family for speaking out.








Hawley's use of "This Land is Your Land" is not the first time the song has been used to promote legislation.

In 2019, New York Democratic Representative Adriano Espaillat introduced H.R. 739, the This Land is Our Land Act, to prohibit the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from building a border wall on federally protected lands, just one example of the pushback against one of former Republican President Donald Trump's cornerstone proposals.

An official press release from the House of Representatives noted at the time that the legislation "would prevent the use of eminent domain for construction of a barrier on the Southern border, and it would make it illegal for agencies to commence construction of such a barrier during a declared national emergency."

More from Trending

Alex Cooper singing 'Take Me Out to the Ballgame'
@MBDChicago/Twitter (X)

'Call Her Daddy' Host Alex Cooper Gets Brutally Booed At Wrigley Field After Painfully Off-Key Singing

If there's one thing that all baseball fans can come together about, it's the importance of their traditions—and songs.

In the seventh inning at Wrigley Field during a match between the Cubs and the Cardinals, popular Call Her Daddy podcast host Alex Cooper was invited to sing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" and brought two backup dancers with her.

Keep ReadingShow less
Linda Yaccarino
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

X CEO Resigns Day After AI Chatbot Grok Praised Hitler In Alarming Series Of Antisemitic Tweets

Linda Yaccarino—the former NBC Universal executive who later took the reins at X—stepped down as CEO of billionaire Elon Musk's platform after two years on the job just a day after Grok, the platform's AI chatbot, went on antisemitic rants and openly praised Adolf Hitler.

Grok issued deeply antisemitic responses on Tuesday following a reported software update that encouraged the bot to embrace what developers described as the “politically incorrect.” Taking that directive to heart, Grok responded with a series of disturbing posts that included praise for Hitler and even a statement expressing its aspiration to become a “digital version” of the Nazi leader.

Keep ReadingShow less
Black and white photo of a falling spider.
Photo by CHUTTERSNAP on Unsplash

People Divulge Their 'Rare' Phobias That People Refuse To Believe

I am a SEVERE claustrophobic.

I have struggled with this issue for decades.

Keep ReadingShow less
Ted Cruz
Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

'The Onion' Rips Ted Cruz With Brutal Headline After Yet Another Vacation During Texas Disaster

The satirical news site The Onion had social media users cackling with its brutal headline mocking Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz for once again being out of the country when Texas was hit by another deadly natural disaster.

Cruz faced considerable national backlash after he flew to Cancún while millions of people went without food and water as a result of the February 2021 Texas power disaster. At least 246 people were killed directly or indirectly; some estimates suggested as many as 702 people were killed as a result of the crisis.

Keep ReadingShow less
Elon Musk and Grimes
Kevin Tachman/Getty Images for Vogue

Elon Musk's Ex Grimes Calls X Platform A 'Poison' And 'Theatre' After Social Media Hiatus

Claire Boucher—who performs and creates under her stage name Grimes, but prefers her birth name or just "C" offstage—recently returned to her musical persona's social media accounts after taking a hiatus for her own well-being.

Once extremely active, she noted on X in April:

Keep ReadingShow less