Good grief ,your'e right on, I still crank up with an old favorite "Pick a Bale a' Cotton" never giving thought to being ovensive to any minorities. But as a young child in the mid to late forties, my family was picking bales of cotton in the San Joaquin Valley to earn enough money to eat and keep a roof over our heads. Just never thought that a great Leadbelly song could be offensive to anyone, even us Okie desendends.
I like the idea of volunteering to our local schools and the national level of education should look at the possibility for the sake of having a music program at little or no cost. Our UK friends can verify this. I think the Penny whistle is taught to every school child in the British Isles. Very effective and they learn do re mi.
Mudjack