'tis of Thee

They caught the last poor man on a poor man's vacation
The cuffed him and they confiscated his stuff
They dragged his black ass down to the station
And said, okay, the streets are safe now

All your pretty white children can come out and see spot run
And they came out of their houses
And they looked around but they didn't see no one

My country 'tis of thee
To take swings at each other on the talk show TV
Why don't you just go ahead and turn off the sun

'Cuz we'll never live long enough
To undo everything they've done to you
Undo everything they've done to you

Above 96th street
They're handin' out smallpox blankets so people don't freeze.
The old dogs have got a new trick
It's called criminalize the symptoms while you spread the disease

And I hold on hard to something
Between my teeth when I'm sleeping
I was up and my jaw aches
And the earth is full of earthquakes

My country 'tis of thee
To take shots at each other on prime time TV
Why don't you just go ahead and turn off the sun

'Cuz we'll never live long enough
To undo everything they've done to you
Undo everything they've done to you

And I'm trying to see through the glare
Yes, I'm struggling just to see what is there

The one person who really knows me best, says I'm like a cat
The kind of cat that you can't pick up and throw into your lap
No, the kind that doesn't mind being held only when it's her idea

Yeah, the kind that feels what she decides to feel
When she's good and ready to feel it

Now I am prowling through the backyard
And I am hiding under the car
I have gotten out of everything, I've gotten into so far

I eat when I am hungry and I travel alone
And just outside the glow of the house
Is where I feel most at home

But in the window you sometimes appear
And your music is faint in my ears