Bibliographer’s comment: The following is a barely started post that’s been sitting in my drafts for months. I’m curious about some of the social and historical phenomena underpinning EDI/Woke. Some researcher might share my curiosity.

I recommend you search You Tube for Moral Re-armament (MRA, or Moral Rearmament) and Up With People videos.

You might also search Glenn Close and the MRA.

I make no claim that Moral Rearmament is the — or even a — progenitor of EDI.

I claim only that there appear to be similarities between the two movements that are interesting enough to investigate. And here I offer only a cursory investigation.

To date, I’ve not seen literature explicitly connecting Moral Rearmament with EDI. Which is not to say this literature doesn’t exist. However, I, like many people of my generation or thereabouts, were exposed to a catchy tune during our formative years, Up With People. (If this hyperlink (to a 1965 version) fails, you’ll find many instances of this song via a quick search.)

From memory, 

"If more people were for people, there'd be a lot less people to worry about, and a lot more people who care."

The song Up With People was, and is still, performed by the Up With People song and dance troupe. The troupe, an offshoot of the Moral Re-armament Movement, was founded by J. Blanton Belk in 1965 as a conservative backlash to the 60s counter-culture movements. Up With People performances were called Sing Outs until the troupe incorporated in 1968 and separated from Moral Re-armament. 1 I’ll get to Moral Re-armament, which has undergone its own change of name, shortly.

“Moral Rearmament: Its Appeal and Threat” 

"Its threat is its anti-intellectualism, its emotionalism, its irrationalism, and its obsession with the glorious end it sees that justifies any means. Some Sing-Out Kids are saying that MRA could be a force in the 1968 elections.

It already is a force. Some people left the Harvard Sing-Out laughing. Others went away scared."

Up With People Archives

"Historical Background

Up with People is an international educational nonprofit organization aimed at creating young adults with global understanding through musical performance, international tours and community service. Up with People emerged in 1965 from Sing Outs. Moral Re-armament, an international morality and spirituality movement, sponsored these shows which attracted young people with its positive message of love, honesty, purity and unselfishness. J. Blanton Belk, the founder of Up with People, incorporated in 1968 with the encouragement of President Dwight Eisenhower and German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer and then separated from Moral Re-armament. Headquartered in Denver, Colorado since 1993, Up with People began in Tucson, Arizona with the University of Arizona serving as the staging center for several months each year as new cast members- young men and women between 18 and 29 learned songs and choreography. Up with People has performed at a variety of notable events including the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, four NFL Super Bowl half time shows and several World Expos as well as for dignitaries around the world. Up with People suspended its programs in 2000 but returned after reorganization in 2004. Today Up with People continues to use music as a way to create understanding between cultures and impact communities worldwide through service in order to create global citizens. It is an independent nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organization without any religious or political affiliations."

Initiatives of Change (IOC)

"Change starts with me: Initiatives of Change (IofC) believes that personal and global change go hand in hand. Each individual has the power and the responsibility to self-reflect and align their actions with their values, thus ‘being the change’ they want to see in the world."