When they broke down the door And put their guns in the face of your wife and child And as they pinned you to the floor, did you say "Officer, I am not resisting you?" American justice, American dream Is this what "the other half" means? Half of our lives dissolved in fear Half our rights, they disappear Is our apathy so corrosive? Where does the cycle start? Hear the sirens screaming out in the distance Hold your family close to your heart American justice, American lies A war of words that I despise I wish the good cops, if they exist, the very best And a bullet for all the Complications, injustice Deliberations, what's the deal? They fake it, we break it And take back what they steal We could rise, black and white Unbound, and make them pay For every tear, for every fear Defend our yesterdays We could rise, black and white And make them pay For every tear, for every fear Defend our yesterdays When they dropped the bomb on the building to k** a movement Did they care where the rights of the murdered went? Police terror in the eyes of the children Police terror in the streets of every town So where's our freedom when the sun goes down? And will the houses that the landlords built keep out the bullet sounds? American justice, American lies A racist prison, anesthetized I wish the good cops, if they exist, the very best And a bullet for all the Complications, injustice Deliberations, what's the deal? They fake it, we break it
And take back what they steal We could rise, black and white Unbound, and make them pay For every tear, for every fear Defend our yesterdays We could rise, black and white And make them pay For every tear, for every fear Defend our yesterdays So they broke down the door Put their guns in the face of your wife and child And as they pinned you to the floor, did you say "Officer, I am not resisting you?" American justice, American dream Is this what "the other half" means? Half of our lives dissolved in fear Half our rights, they disappear Is our apathy so corrosive? Where does the cycle start? Hear the sirens screaming out in the distance Hold your family close to your heart American justice, American lies A war of words that I despise I wish the good cops, if they exist, the very best And a bullet for all the Complications, injustice Deliberations, what's the deal? They fake it, we break it And take back what they steal We could rise, black and white Unbound, and make them pay For every tear, for every fear Defend our yesterdays We could rise, black and white And make them pay For every tear, for every fear Defend our yesterdays If we try, yeah, we try If we try, yeah, we try To defend Together, together Together, together Defend our yesterdays Together, together Defend our tomorrows Together, together Defend our yesterdays Together, together Defend our tomorrows Together, together