From the Workers Circle of Northern California: Doikayt through Yiddish Song
For the Worker's Circle of Northern California's 125th anniversary, a new adaptation of the classic Yiddish folk song "Ale Brider."
Diasporic Jewish culture thrives across the United States, and legacy organizations like the Workers Circle of Northern California continue to abide by progressive diasporist values in their collective engagement of an activist community that fights for social and economic justice and civil liberties for all. Ahead of its 125th Anniversary, the Northern California Workers Circle published a pamphlet to bring the idea of doikayt to a wider audience, and kindly allowed Der Spekter to reprint excerpts. We begin with the rousing Yiddish community-solidarity folk song Ale Brider (All Brothers), originally adapted from a poem by Morris Winchevsky.
Ale Brider is infinitely adaptable, and in diasporist Jewish tradition, it has inspired many updated versions over the years to spotlight local political and cultural developments. This 2024 update by Der Spekter's own founding co-editor Josh Waletzky and director of the Klezcadia Festival Laura Rosenberg was created to mark the inaugural season of the Klezcadia Festival in Victoria, British Columbia. Sheet music and historical information are available at the Workers Circle/Arbeter Ring's Mlotek Yiddish song archive.
Yiddish lyrics:
Un mir zaynen ale brider - oy, oy, ale brider,
Un mir zingen sheyne lider - oy, oy, oy.
Un mir haltn zikh in eynem- oy, oy, zikh in eynem,
Ale minem, ale shkheynem - oy, oy, oy.
Oy, oy, oy, oy-oy-oy...
Un mir zaynen ale shvester - oy, oy, ale shvester,
Azoy vi rokhl, rus un ester - oy, oy, oy.
Un mir zaynen freylekh munter - oy, oy, freylekh munter,
Zingen lider, tantsn unter - oy, oy, oy.
Oy, oy, oy, oy-oy-0y...
Un mir zaynen ale eynik -oy, oy, ale eynik,
Tsi mir zaynen fil tsi veynik - oy, oy, oy.
Un mir shteyen do tsuzamen - oy, oy, do tsuzamen,
Khotsh mir filn andere tamen - oy, oy, 0y.
Oy, oy, oy, oy-oy-0y...
Frum un fray fareynikt ale - oy, oy, fareynikt ale,
Via beygl mit a byale - oy, oy, oy.
Vi dos fendl mitn tepl - oy, oy, mitn tepl,
Vi der honik mitn epl - oy, oy, oy.
Oy, oy, oy, oy-oy-oy
Tzedek Community Band performs Ale Brider
English Translation
And we all are brothers,
And we sing beautiful songs.
And we stick together,
All kinds, all genders, all neighbors.
And we all are sisters,
Just like Rachel, Ruth and Esther.
And we are happy and joyous,
Singing songs and dancing along.
And we all are united,
Whether we are many or few.
And we all stand here together,
Though we have different tastes.
Religious and secular all united,
Like a bagel with a biale.
Like the pot with the pan,
Like apple with honey.
