The Grammy-winning singer Lucy Dacus is performing “Bread & Roses,” whose political slogan began amid the women’s suffrage and labor movements, at Zohran Mamdani’s inauguration as mayor of New York City on Thursday.
The slogan declares that people should have their basic necessities met while also being given dignity. It inspired a poem by James Oppenheim that was published in American Magazine in 1911, and the next year it became a rallying cry during a textile strike for higher wages and better working conditions.
Mimi Fariña, a singer-songwriter and Joan Baez’s sister, turned Mr. Oppenheim’s words into music in 1974 and founded a nonprofit organization called Bread & Roses that brings free live music to sick and imprisoned people. (Ms. Dacus and her supergroup boygenius performed at a benefit concert for the group in 2021.)
Judy Collins sang “Bread & Roses” as the title track of her 1974 album. Phil Collins, Pete Seeger and Utah Phillips have also recorded the song.
The artist and social media personality Babbulicious and dj mOma were also part of the inauguration lineup. The Tony-winning actor Mandy Patinkin sang “Over the Rainbow” with a school chorus from Staten Island.
Mr. Mamdani has been a fan of Ms. Dacus’s music. In September, before he was elected mayor, he made a surprise appearance at her All Things Go festival in Queens.
Jonathan Abrams is a Times reporter who writes about the intersections of sports and culture and the changing cultural scenes in the South.
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