世直し音頭 - Social Reform Ondo (Japanese Day Laborers' Song)

Описание: A song of the labor union of day laborers that once existed: the All Japan Casual Labor Union (全日本自由労働組合). In postwar Japan, the Unemployment Relief Works were institutionalized in 1949 to address mass unemployment. Its main participants were socially disadvantaged people such as the elderly, women, foreign residents in Japan, and members of historically discriminated communities. They primarily engaged in physical labor such as road construction, sustaining themselves on daily wages. After 1950, activists dismissed during the Red Purge also began joining these ranks. They taught know-how in organizing workers and in collective bargaining, and came to play a leading role in the struggle for jobs. Against this background, the All Japan Casual Labor Union organized workers and carried out movements opposing the termination of the Unemployment Relief Works and discriminatory treatment, playing a major role in struggles for social security such as the establishment of old-age pensions and health insurance. After several mergers, the union is now the All Japan Construction, Transport and General Workers' Union (全日本建設交運一般労働組合), but its slogan "Oppose unemployment, poverty, and war" is still carried forward today.

Year Composed: 1967
Words and music: All Japan Casual Labor Union Tokyo's Singing Voice (全日自労東京のうたごえ)
Chorus: All Japan Casual Labor Union Tokyo Chorus (全日自労東京合唱団)
Source: Vinyl record "LPステレオセンターレコード5"　CLS-5
Image: Members of the All Japan Casual Labor Union staging a sit-in protest in front of Kyoto City Hall, 1962.

Texts on barner:
「失対亊業打切反対」
"Oppose the termination of the Unemployment Relief Works"

「すべての国民の生活を保障せよ」
"Secure the livelihood of all people"

Not to be confused with another labor union "自治労" (Jichirō), which has a similar abbreviation. The former is a union of local government workers and is an abbreviation for "全日本自治団体労働組合" (All Japan Prefectural and Municipal Workers Union), whereas the "自労" (Jirō) mentioned in this song is an abbreviation for "自由労働者" (casual laborers). Although the characters look similar, their meanings are entirely different.


Lyrics

年はとっても　この心意気
苦労の数じゃ
苦労の数じゃ　引けとらぬ
みんなでつくろう　平和な暮らしを
失業と貧乏と　戦争なくそう

たとえ体は　不自由でも
生きる権利は
生きる権利は　曲げられぬ
みんなでつくろう　平和な暮らしを
失業と貧乏と　戦争なくそう

仲間同志だ　腕組み合って
助け合いする
助け合いする　全日自労
みんなでつくろう　平和な暮らしを
失業と貧乏と　戦争なくそう

[This video is a corrected version of one I uploaded earlier]