In 1959, Charles Mingus wrote “Fables of Faubus,” a song directly addressing Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus, who had blocked nine Black teenagers from entering Little Rock Central High School. Mingus criticized Faubus for exploiting American democratic protection to oppress marginalized communities. The original lyrical version was suppressed by Columbia Records, who released an instrumental version to maintain commercial viability, while avoiding the contentious political message.
The song featured a call-and-response format, clearly linking Faubus to fascism and underscoring the ongoing struggles against racism in America. This was in line with Louis Armstrong’s earlier criticism of Eisenhower’s inaction.
The article highlights that Arkansas still grapples with the legacies of Faubus, where extremist groups operate with impunity. Mingus’s direct confrontation of state-sanctioned discrimination illustrated how systems can perpetuate exclusion without accountability.
Columbia’s editorial decision to censor the lyrics epitomized a “competent complicity,” enabling white audiences to engage with protest art while avoiding real confrontation. In contrast, Candid Records, where Mingus recorded the vocal version, allowed him full creative freedom, delivering a powerful message.
Mingus’s concept of “rotary perception,” which likens music to data points within a circle, is used to argue that historical patterns of autocracy and racial injustice are often repeated, emphasizing the failure to learn from the past. He recognized the cyclical nature of these issues, remaining relevant in contemporary times.
