Strange Fruit

Strange Fruit is a powerful song written by Billie Holiday in 1939. It is an anti racist song written in opposition to the lynching of African Americans mainly in the south. It is about the lynchings that frequently occurred in the south. The singer/songwriter offers a historic perspective Pre Civil Rights Movement. She uses a strong metaphor in comparing the lynched men to fruits, which in the South, both hung from trees. She seems to be writing about something she had seen or witnessed, or at the least something she had heard of. Her strong feelings of sadness and disgust at the lynchings is made evident by the emotion she pours into the song. The tone of the song - made by the instruments tells of the sadness, as does the way it is sung, slowly, portray the theme of the song. I liked the song somewhat, but what I like most is despite the potential backlash from the recording of such a song during her time, Billie Holiday stuck to her guns and published her song. People such as her, those with guts and a willingness to have their say, as well as those with a "where there is a will, there is a way" kind of attitude lead to the accomplishment of equal rights for all in America.