When the Tear Gas Fills the Sky

I've seen the lands beyond these borders,

where the corporations rule

And they spin their lies and they globalize,

and the working man's their tool

And the streams are so polluted,

that the banks are bleak and bare

And the babies all are born deformed,

and the smog is everywhere

And the workers' wages dropped

thirty percent in just one year,

Now those greedy bastards want to bring

the same conditions here.

So I called upon you brother,

and you asked what I would do

And I told the truth dear brother

when I spoke these words to you.

I will stand beside your shoulder

when the tear gas fills the sky,

If a National Guardsman shoots me down

I'll be looking him in the eye.

I will wash their pepper from your face

and go with you to jail,

And if you don't make it through this fight

I swear I'll tell your tale.

I will stay with you in the prison cell

in solidarity

And I will not leave that cursed room

'til you walk out with me.

For we the people fight for freedom

while the cops just fight for pay,

And as long as the truth is in our hearts

we're sure to win someday.

I will not falter when that iron fist

comes out of the velvet glove,

I will stand beside you brother

to defend this land we love.

For I've seen the warplanes leaving

to bring death to distant lands,

Bearing loads of missiles made

by working people's hands.

And they're guided 'cross the oceans,

and they're guided 'cross the skies,

And they're guided into Third World homes

where starving children die.

And they fuel the flames of hatred

and they teach the soul to rage,

Now those evil bastards want to write

another bloody page.

So I called upon you sister,

and you asked what I would do

And I told the truth dear sister

when I spoke these words to you.

I will stand beside your shoulder

when the tear gas fills the sky,

If a National Guardsman shoots me down

I'll be looking him in the eye.

I will wash their pepper from your face

and go with you to jail,

And if you don't make it through this fight

I swear I'll tell your tale.

I will stay with you in the prison cell

in solidarity

And I will not leave that cursed room

'til you walk out with me.

For we the people fight for freedom

while the cops just fight for pay,

And as long as the truth is in our hearts

we're sure to win someday.

I will not falter when that iron fist

comes out of the velvet glove,

I will stand beside you sister

to defend this land we love.