Once upon our time In a land far gone Where hate crime’s enforced by state crime Even though they say the land of the free was made for both you and me
Well, the girl next door might have cancer And the hospital nearby’s got the answer, but She’s never been there, can’t afford healthcare In the arms of the home of the brave, she’s carried to her grave
Marionettes for presidents, strung out on wars And we’re not sure who’s american anymore Division of church and state is my kind of separatism Spreading god’s love through scare tactics is casual terrorism And if abortion’s murder, let’s strip that right away, and Who gave women the right to vote anyway?
So many babies Brought into the world today Amongst so many maybes Like maybe they’ll feel loved, be provided for, and have a place to stay But instead of placing them in loving stable homes That might not fill the conservative bill They’re tossed around the foster system like a hot potato Instead of making friends of Dorothy They’re thrown to the tornado
Death warrants signed by murderers Who came to power through the back door Is this democracy or a monarchy What do we hold elections for You write your personal agenda on a post-it note And leave the constitution lying on the bathroom floor
This is for the world trade center, for columbine For oklahoma city and the lost and lonely friends of mine For Ireland, Iran, Iraq And the suffering caused by the Indian ocean’s attack For Falun Gong and the Berlin wall The homeless, the hungry, and slaves to drugs and alcohol Indian, Australian, African Slaves Native Americans whose amber waves of grain Were melted down into White Men’s riches Victims of war and for Salem’s witches For boys who were told to act more like boys And for girls who were told to only play with girl toys The voiceless, forgotten, plagued by disease God help us please, please, please
Maybe one day I’ll stop alternating Between thirteen hours of eating and thirteen hours of sleeping And do something about it with what I guess could have been a twenty-six hour day