The Protest Singer

Featuring my rock ‘n’ roll book club

My Rock ‘n’ Roll Book Club met a few nights ago in south Minneapolis, eating tacos from a nearby Mexican grocer. We have no clear leaders or facilitators. Nobody comes prepared with questions. We rotate who picks the book and who hosts, and we allow the conversation to flow freely. My friend Michael presciently picked The Protest Singer: An Intimate Portrait of Pete Seeger just a few weeks prior to the city’s chaotic turn.

The night began tentatively. We sipped our drinks, said things about the cold and the occupation. We were all, it seemed, “as good as one could be.” Eventually, though, our nervous systems settled. We discussed the book for half of the night, and the other half we spent talking about patrols, mutual aid, and the various resistance streams we’re all involved in. Occasionally the conversation would loop back to Seeger and his legacy, the famous hearing where Frank Tavenner Jr., chief counsel to the House Un-American Activities Committee, tried to get Seeger to admit that he was a communist, or the Clearwater sloop, the replica boat Seeger helped build on the Hudson River to inspire clean water action.

It’s been hard to write lately, and because this moment belongs to so many of us, it only felt natural to turn it over to my small community—one little slice of Minneapolis and Saint Paul. So, here are a few words from my friends about Alec Wilkinson’s The Protest Singer: An Intimate Portrait of Pete Seeger.

“The solidarity and peacefulness of protest singing makes the asymmetry of violence obvious. Pete’s commitment and endurance enabled him to get good at this work, and teach resistance movements over decades from a well of experience.” — Scott Munson

“We sat in a circle marveling at Pete—the house he built by hand, the folk songs he spread, the energetic optimism that kept him singing and inspiring others well into his 90s. He never gave up hope in what’s possible when good people gather and imagine a better future. And as we talked about makeshift street memorials, school closures, and beloved neighbors in hiding, I could hear that gentle radical quietly still singing now: ‘come walk upright along the people’s way / from darkness unto the sunlit day / from dark to sunlit day.’” - Michael Wright

“Pete Seeger’s life is a beautiful example of what it looks like to amplify marginalized voices and have hope for a better world. Inspiring and uplifting, he is a reminder that listening, learning, sharing, and showing up in actionable ways is necessary to elicit change.” — Kelsie Marie

“During this time, reflecting on Pete Seeger—listening to his songs and his interviews—has felt like finding light in a cave. It has given me a glimmer of hope. Pete Seeger was an all-American badass.” —Mike Smith

“Pete Seeger’s dad, a composer and musicologist, wrote that ‘Music, as any art, is not an end in itself, but is a means for achieving larger ends,’ per Alec Wilkinson’s book on Seeger the younger, The Protest Singer. I’ve still got the decadent tastes available to a person of privilege, so I struggle with this idea of music being first and foremost a tool for dismantling power structures: I want, at least on occasion, funk for funk’s sake, and the clarity of a beautiful melody. But I’m working on it, because this isn’t one of those occasions. Here in Minneapolis in 2026, I’ve been able to feel better than ever the (political, disruptive, cathartic) influence of a song well sung.” —Dan Muse

“It was perfect timing to learn more about Pete ‘the corny crusader’ Seeger. He lived many lives and was way more of a badass then I thought. He reminds me of Ian Mackaye and Bob Ross united with a banjo.” — Ray Roberts

Around 9:30, most of us rose to leave, but three of us stood near the door and talked for another hour. When I left, my car dash display read 2°F. I drove east along 38th Street, past George Floyd Square and south on Minnehaha Ave. I thought about Toshi, Seeger’s wife, who supported his crusades, world travels, and big ideas, holding down the home and raising their three children. I thought about all the people who make a movement, all the people in the background, the cooks, the caregivers, the silent donors, teachers, paralegals, and the couple at last Friday’s massive protest giving out hand warmers.

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