Raised in chains of depravity
Shackled down catwalks
Degraded and dehumanized
Every second of every day
Colonized for profit
Tattooed by flagellation
Forced into toil
Tilling the soil of the iceman
Together in the fields of despair
They sang the songs of captivity
So painful
So hopeless
So angry
Yet so beautiful
Melodies arranged in emotional chaos
Music glowing in hues of blues
All asking the same question
Why
They didn’t understand
Why they were stripped from their homes
Taken so far away
To become trade for chattel
How they’re lives changed so fast
Wondering why does it take so long
To grow old and die
So they could be free
Moaning in harmony
They prayed hopeful
Never giving up on their God
The slightest bit of optimism
A tiny plume of hope
Rose above the cotton puff clouds
And a hazy shade of regret
Appeared on the faces of their captors
In a half smile of distain and dominance
A shot of high class bourbon
To wash away the shame they bore
Of committing humans to a lifetime of pain
For desiring freedom
The crime of being born too innocent
Or perhaps looking too different
Punishable by oppression eternal
A crime of gross misfortune
Live and Love in Peace