Can I Live

Back then what you made us yours

Took our kids away to love manage and take care of yours

Then you put us on the front line to fight your fight and die for your rights

Not even worried about us, just tomorrow's delight

You cut us and beat us and throw us in jail for no reason; the system defeats us

You strip me of my personality and give me some new features; so, no longer am I a person, I am a creature

Then you have the nerve to say we all have it good when it's only two or three people really making it out of the hood

But wait I'm not speaking on sports or my brothers with the rap careers

I'm talking about little Tre’ that went to the store with little to no fears

Didn’t even make it home that night and left mama in a lot of tears

You throw dirt on our names telling us we're a disgrace, you might as well just spit on our graves

But don't worry one day I'll rise up and every last one of you will know my name

You call me dumb and stupid when I'm having a good time but you never really know what's going on in my mind

Yesterday with my own two eyes I watched you take my brother from me; not physically but mentally, you see-

You told him he had it all and then took it all away turning him into one of those drug dealers of today

All his elders continue to tell him to pray but that just goes in one ear and out the other way

He don’t really want to hear all that he just wants to spray with that 9 mm in his pocket and his homeboys riding with him telling him that he got it.

But let's not take our minds off the matter at hand once we get good at something there you go telling me to quit

Telling me that I'm nothing that I won't ever be….

Able to graduate the class of this and the home of that to them it's all a bunch of riffraff

They don't care then we get mad and all they do is laugh

But you still talk down about me

Telling me my hair is nappy in your eyes I guess I’m nasty

See what I really mean is you must not want me to be happy

You still want me out on some field calling you Pappy and every time you yell out to me you want me to answer with yes sir big daddy

No sir I think I'm fine along with my other brothers and sisters

As a matter of fact one of my Nigerian brothers just got his doctorates degree and a few of my sisters just crossed the stage with honors down in DC

But you still don't want us to be happy!!!

You want me to mimic some artificial superhero idol what a joke

The lord gave me my own life so I ask Can I Live

I went from fully clothed and classy to half dressed and trashy

Because the type of clothing my people wear are too short tight and baggy yet when I ask for a better clothing design you stop and call me naggy

So I don't understand what it is that you want from me

I just can't believe things are really going to change for me

I have these beautiful brown eyes and I still can't see

I told a wise old man this exact same thing

He looked me in my eyes and said you can't see oxygen but you believe you can breathe

That old man is different from me

I just don't think he can see what I see

He see’s a change coming and I see a drain coming

They’re going to deprive us from all that we have

Their going to take our belongings and put them in zip lock bags

I tried my hardest to apologize but there were so many tears in my eyes from the feeling of the jolts of that Taser in my side

I threw my hands in the sky and asked him to tell my mama I said ...

Bye