I memorized the Gettysburg address
And recited Lincoln’s words on stage
In a school play when I was cast as him
Performed when I was nine years old
Uncertain why but proud that I was selected
To make a speech for liberty and equality
Praising a government of the people
By the people and for the people
Naively thinking that was the reality
Sure that was the way things should be
Knowing nothing about Jim Crow oppression
Or the ongoing Cold War Witch Hunt
Every day saluting and pledging allegiance
The same as today in every classroom
While we were captive listeners to prayers
That once again have become the law of the land
Looking back now I wonder about my teacher
Whether this play was her version of wokeness
What the reactionaries today call indoctrination
That she slipped past the McCarthyites
Given what I learned later of the country I grew up in
This is not the democracy I was led to believe in
But the fair treatment ethos instilled in me then
Stayed with me as a passion for social justice
The boy with the false beard and stovepipe hat
Grew up wanting those fine words to be true
Dismayed by the betrayal of the promises made
Again and again to generation after generation
Liberty and justice for all has never existed
And no matter who gets elected
As long as business continues as usual
Nothing fundamental changes
