Subject: "The House I Live In" (Paul Robeson) Wed Apr 01, 2009 9:54 am
THE HOUSE I LIVE IN (1947) original lyrics
What is America to me? A name, a map or a flag I see, A certain word, "Democracy", What is America to me?
The house I live in, The friends that I have found, The folks beyond the railroad and the people all around, The worker and the farmer, the sailor on the sea, The men who built this country, that's America to me.
The words of old Abe Lincoln, of Jefferson and Paine, of Washington and Jackson and the tasks that still remain. The little bridge at Concord, where Freedom's Fight began, of Gettysburg and Midway and the story of Bataan.
The house I live in, my neighbors White and Black, the people who just came here or from generations back, the town hall and the soapbox, the torch of Liberty, a home for all God's children, that's America to me.
The house I live in, the goodness everywhere, a land of wealth and beauty with enough for all to share. A house that we call "Freedom", the home of Liberty, but especially the people, that's America to me.
But especially the people--that's the true America...