A Soundtrack for Success: How Music Fueled the American Civil Rights Movement

“We sing the freedom songs today for the same reason the slaves sang them, because we too are in bondage and the songs add hope to our determination that ‘We shall overcome, Black and white together, We shall overcome someday’… These songs bind us together, give us courage together, help us to march together.” – Dr. Martin Luther King. Jr. 

“Soapbox” in Review

From September 2023 to December 2024, Axell Boomer hosted a radio show titled “Soapbox” on the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s student radio station, WSUM 91.7FM Madison. Using songs as primary sources or thematic markers, he developed the show to explore protest movements throughout history and the music genres that communicated their goals.

Resurrecting King and Resurrection City: Opposing Memories of Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. and a Forgotten Moment in His Legacy

Every year, come the third Monday of January, Americans flip through news channels reflecting on the legacy of Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Jr. Individuals active on social media—depending on the political affiliations of their peers—view a long series of posts listing the bastardization of King’s memory on both sides of the aisle.