Anne Braden Songtext
von Flobots

What I′ve realized since is that it's a very painful process
But it is not destructive. It′s the road to liberation
That what really happened in the 60s was that this country
Took just the first step toward admitting that it had been
Wrong on race. And creativity burst out in all directions

From the color of the faces in Sunday songs
To the hatred they raised all the youngsters on
Once upon a time in this country long ago
She knew there was something wrong
Because the song said yellow, red, black and white
Everyone precious in the path of Christ
But what about the daughter of the woman cleaning their house?
Wasn't she a child they were singing about?

And if Jesus loves us black and white skin
Why didn't her white mother invite them in?
When did it become a room for no blacks to step in?
How did she already know not to ask the question?


Left lasting impressions, adolescence, comforts gone
She never thought things would ever change
But she always knew there was something wrong

She always knew there was something wrong
She always knew there was something wrong

Years later she found herself Mississippi bound
To help stop the legalized lynching of Mr. Willie McGee
But they couldn′t stop it
So they thought that they′d talk to the governor about what happened
And say "We're tired of being used as an excuse to kill black men"

But the cops wouldn′t let 'em past
And these women they struck ′em as uppity
So they hauled 'em all off to jail
And they called it protective custody
Then from her cell she heard her jailers grumbling about outsiders
When she called ′em out and said she was from the South
They shouted "Why is a nice Southern
Lady making trouble for the governor?"
She said "I guess I'm not your type of lady
And I guess I'm not your type of Southerner


But before you call me traitor
Well it′s plain it′s just to say
I was a child in Mississippi but I'm ashamed of it today"

She always knew there was something wrong
She always knew there was something wrong
She always knew there was something wrong
She always knew there was something wrong

And all of a sudden I realized that I was on to something

Imagine the world that you′re standing within
All of your neighbors and family friends
How would you cope facing the fact
The flesh on their hands was tainted with sin?
She faced this every day
People she saw on a regular basis

People she loved in several cases
People she knew were incredibly racist
It was painful but she never stopped loving them
Never stopped calling their names
And she never stopped being a Southern woman
And she never stopped fighting for change
And she saw that her struggle was in the tradition
Of ancestors never aware of her

It continues today, the soul of a Southerner

Born of the other America

She always knew there was something wrong
She always knew there was something wrong
She always knew there was something wrong
She always knew there was something wrong

What you win in the immediate battles is little compared to
The effort you put into it. But if you see that as a part of
This total movement to build a new world, you know what
Cathedral you're building when you put your stone in. You do
Have a choice. You don′t have to be a part of the world of the
Lynchers. You can join the other America. There is another America