Language   

Ballad of the Student Sit-Ins

Guy Carawan
Language: English


Guy Carawan


The time was nineteen sixty, the place the USA,
That February 1st became a history-making day.
From Greensboro across the land
The news spread far and wide,
That quietly and bravely youth took a giant stride.

Heed the call, Americans all,
Side by equal side,
Sisters, sit in dignity,
Brothers, sit in pride.


From Mobile, Alabama to Nashville, Tennessee,
From Denver, Colorado to Washington, D. C.
There rose a cry for freedom, for human liberty,
Oh come along, my brother, and take a seat with me.

Heed the call, Americans all,
Side by equal side,
Sisters, sit in dignity,
Brothers, sit in pride.


The time has come to prove our faith in all men’s dignity,
We serve the cause of justice, of all humanity
We’re soldiers in the army, with Martin Luther King
Peace and love our weapons, nonviolence is our creed.

Heed the call, Americans all,
Side by equal side,
Sisters, sit in dignity,
Brothers, sit in pride.


This is a land we cherish, a land of liberty
How can Americans deny all men equality?
Our Constitution says we can’t and Christians, you should know,
Jesus died that morning, so all mankind could know.

Heed the call, Americans all,
Side by equal side,
Sisters, sit in dignity,
Brothers, sit in pride.


No mobs of violence and hate shall turn us from our goal
No Jim Crow laws nor police state shall stop my free bound soul,
Three thousand students bound in jail still lift their heads and sing,
We’ll travel on to freedom, like songbirds on the wing.

Heed the call, Americans all,
Side by equal side,
Sisters, sit in dignity,
Brothers, sit in pride.



Main Page

Please report any error in lyrics or commentaries to antiwarsongs@gmail.com

Note for non-Italian users: Sorry, though the interface of this website is translated into English, most commentaries and biographies are in Italian and/or in other languages like French, German, Spanish, Russian etc.




hosted by inventati.org