They promised her circus, they promised her treats
They promised her clowns, they promised her sweets
When they took her from the dusty small town streets
Of her family home
And she never again saw her mother's eyes
Never again heard her sister's cries
She never again believed a white man's lies
Her whole life long
And those who lived charmed lives from the start
Say they carry no guilt for they played no part
In decisions that tore the very heart
From the people's breast
It may not be our guilt but it is our shame
If we turn our backs now if we bury their claim
If we sit on our hands in apathy's name
It may not be our guilt but it is our shame.
She'd find herself a place to sleep each night
Away from the noise away from the fights
She'd tell herself everything would be alright
When the morning came
And she drowned herself in a sea of booze
Another black kid on the street ain't news
There's nothing to win she had nothing to lose
Not even her name
And those who passed by her every day
Never looked in her eyes before they turned awau
Turned her into an anecdotal play
For their friends at night
I saw her again just the other night
She ws singing her songs in a bright spotlight
And no-one in the audieence averted their sight
From her face this time
She was singing it proud, she was singing it strong
And the message was clear at the core of her song
We're a distance to go but we don't have long
To bring the children home
And those who've lived charmed lives all their days
In their serious suits with their chardonnays
Cannot see that if they'd only come half way
They'd find an outstretched hand.