They ripped the children from their parents
And called them criminals and errants
Who only came beseeching help—
A cage for each forsaken whelp,
Or holding pen, to pass the time,
And whose was it, the awesome crime?
My country, oh, my country, oh,
America, what you forgo
In treating the poor helpless so.
Asylum seekers, so they came,
Pursuing safety—theirs no shame—
But, labeled as an “infestation”
The shame belongs to this sad nation
Forsaking high ideals sublime
To stumble into ruthless crime.
My country, oh, my country, oh,
America, the land I know
But love with loathing even so.
They said it was the name of Christ
Did sanction, and, as hypnotized
Repeated it an empty mantra,
While to Christ’s teachings acting contra,
And to the least, sweet little lambs
Sentenced to where God gives no damns.
America, my country, oh,
For they were weak and poor, although
No tender mercy did you show.