NYC from the Staten Island Ferry.
Staten Island, a plantation
Paddyrollers at every station
They ordered the Freedman show a pass
Or he’d join his ancestors under the grass
Freedman raised his hands to show no threat
Hisses and rattles, he’s trapped in the net
Staten Island Goddamn!
A blue boa’s grasp
A grunt, a gasp
A beast choke
A strangled stroke
You scream for air and you heave
I can’t breathe! I can’t breathe! I can’t breathe!
Staten Island Goddamn!
A forearm lynch
Drinks your blood until it’s quenched
It slinks away to spread more stench
To kill you again at the judge’s bench
You scream for air and you heave
I can’t breathe! I can’t breathe! I can’t breathe!
Staten Island Goddamn!
Police profile, stop and frisk us the most
Demand justice and you’re a ghost
Stand your ground law, license to roast
Just-us prevails, time to boast
You scream for air and you heave
I can’t breathe! I can’t breathe! I can’t breathe!
Staten Island Goddamn!
Million dollar compensation
A transient sensation
Genocide and mentacide on our nation
A scheme for family castration
You scream for air and you heave
I can’t breathe! I can’t breathe! I can’t breathe!
Los Angeles, California! Ferguson, Missouri! Phoenix, Arizona!
Staten Island, New York Goddamn!
©
