Civil Rights
During the civil right movements many singer started singing protest song to let everyone know about the things that were happening to African American. Philip David Ochs was a songwriter with fierce cannon of protest songs. But this one in particular resonated with the civil rights movement, because it talks specifically about the struggle that was happening in Mississippi. Ochs sings, "Someone's got to go to Mississippi just as sure as there's a right and there's a wrong. Even though you say the time will change, that time is just too long." He is trying to speak for those black people who are suffering for their human rights.
Phil Ochs was in born El Paso, Texas December 19, 1940. He grew up in a non-political and non-religious Jewish middle-class family, with older sister Sonia, known as Sonny, and younger brother Michael. As a teenager, Ochs was recognized as a talented clarinet player, and was praised for having exceptional musical feeling and a gift for interpretation. In 1958, he enrolled in the Ohio State University in Columbus. Unhappy after his first semester, he took a leave of absence and went to Florida. While in Miami, the 18-year-old Ochs was put in jail for two weeks for sleeping on a park bench, an incident he would later recall: "Somewhere during the course of those fifteen days I decided to become a writer. My primary thought was journalism ... so in a flash I decided — I'll be a writer and a major in journalism” (phi lochs). He returned to Ohio State to study journalism and began to be interested in politics. he started his own underground newspaper called The Word. His two main interests, politics and music, soon merged, and Ochs began writing topical political songs.
He wrote a song “going down to Mississippi “to express his feeling about the problems of Mississippi in 50s.   Mississippi was the poorest state in the nation. 86% of all non-white families lived below the national poverty line. In addition, the state had a terrible record of black voting rights violations. In the 1950s, Mississippi was 45% black, but only 5% of voting age blacks were registered to vote. Some counties did not have a single registered black voter. “Whites insisted that blacks did not want to vote, but this was not true. Many blacks wanted to vote, but they worried, and rightfully so, that they might lose their job (Bob Moses).  In 1962, over 260 blacks in Madison County overcame this fear and waited in line to register. 50 more came the next day. They all never got chance vote because they were all blacks.

The little rock nine inspired him the most to write this kind of song.  Little Rock Nine was a group of African-American students who were enrolled in Little Rock Central High School in 1957. The ensuing Little Rock Crisis, in which the students were initially prevented from entering the racially segregated school by Arkansas Governor, this was considered to be one of the most important events in the African-American Civil Rights Movement.  Phil Ochs says in his song that “but gun is large and hate is hard” saying that there are thousand people who are against these little kids, who are trying to get good education.  They are trying to make little hope for next generation to be able to go to any school they want. The whites would never let them do this; they would instead arrest them or even give them some sort of new problems.
One of the other cases was when the college town of Oxford, Mississippi, erupted in violence. At the center of the controversy stood James Meredith, an African American who was attempting to register at the all-white University of Mississippi, known as "Ole Miss." Meredith had the support of the federal government, which insisted that Mississippi honor the rights of all its citizens, regardless of race. Mississippi's refusal led to a showdown between state and federal authorities and the storming of the campus by a segregationist mob.
The whole song speaks about people struggling for their rights and how they get ignored because of different race.  “It’s not trouble that I’m looking for but there’s lots of good work calling me down”.  Everyone has a hope of good tomorrow so they we will never stop trying even if they find it impossible. “If the Freedom Democratic Party is not seated now, I question America. Is this America? The land of the free and the home of the brave? Where we have to sleep with our telephones off the hook, because our lives are threatened daily? (Williams 241)
Later in Phil Ochs life he traveled around the world to spread the peace everywhere he went. He was one of the most popular writer and singer in his time.  He wrote many famous songs like “ I Ain't Marching Anymore”,  “Cops of the World “ and “ All  My Heroes Are Dead” for the solider for our country. On April 9, 1976, Phil Ochs, ended his life by hanging himself. He was 35 years old. He had written over 100 songs, and had traveled to many countries. He suffered from manic-depression and had been experiencing a long term writer's block.