"I will try - try, try, try - not to name names. Why? Because too often, I am guilty of the same. I am no one to criticize. We are all products of a racist culture, eager to assimilate, eager to eliminate. It is not our fault that we have been indoctrinated, suffocated, depreciated, LIED TO. Yet, to an extent, we are all guilty. This song was, I will admit, inspired by a mere individual, an encounter with him, and the subsequent realizations his ignorance forced me (thank God) to face. He will remain nameless however because a part of him has infected all of us, like a disease, a cancer, a virus. If we do not utilize the cure - self-knowledge, cultural inclusion, the oneness of humankind - it will prove terminal, beyond a doubt. Recognize the '90s racist within you (me). Challenge him. Overcome him. STOP SLEEPWALKING." - Ryan Downey, 1995.
lyrics
My friend is part of the new '90s breed
Unaware he's a member of a certain creed
A man with no flaws that he knows how to find
A self-styled non-racist in his own mind...
A self-appointed servant with self-serving ideals
Sleepwalking through his life, unaware
Conditioned to the benefits
Proud member of a nation
On the ashes of a prior civilization
Never seeing his role in the decimation
Never seeing his role, assimilation
Never seeing his role, declaring, 'progress, son'
His explanation, declaring 'progression'
His explanation
I can see the hate that hides behind those eyes
And I can see the pain that lurks beneath that smile
I can feel the pain because I have known the same
And I can see that nothing, nothing is to gain!
So what's it get? All of our pomp and glory?
A lifetime spent playing the role of a category
Our roles defined like products on an assembly line
But who's to judge? When we (including me) won't budge?
I challenge. I challenge the lies.
I challenge. I challenge the lies.
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