Also, what about "darkies" in song? Henry Clay Work was one of the strongest abolitionists of the civil war period. He used "darkies" in " Kingdom Coming", which is about slaveowners running away, and the joy the former slaves felt as the South lost the Civil War. I would think Work's political views should get him off the hook on this one--and should also do so for anybody singing the song now who prefaces the singing with this information about Work.