CESAR The Grapes of wrath [ traditional folk ] Un-carded Latino men stand for hours down on the corner Waiting for work outside by the local liquor store The homeless war vet throws his crutch in utter frustration Crying "Lord I just can't take this shit no more!" The independent trucker looking on shakes his weary head He has his own problems with fuel prices and corporate axes It's seven days on the road, above legal weight and speed Trying to survive while they lower wages and raise his taxes The grapes of wrath are poisoned with chemical pollution They're rotting on the dry American vine The homeless man and deportee field hand Are in the county hole doing illegal time All hail the American corrupt congressional Caesar Benedict Arnold in the people's capitol tower We render unto you more than seven times what you're due And you betray us with your corporate lobby dower From Oklahoma dust, family farms and inner city wastelands Harvest song from a distant shore of Galilee The grapes of wrath of we the people are fermenting In untamed hearts from sea to once shining sea Tired farmers toil before dawn until late at night While prices rise, profits fall and family farms are lent And the president of the state's blind education board Cries "more taxes" while raising his salary thirty-five percent Now they tax our seniors for drawing a well-earned pension Triple our tax at the county, state and local levels Tax our homes, our land and whenever we buy or sell And rebate the rich while bowing low to corporate devils The grapes of wrath are poisoned with chemical pollution They're rotting on the dry American vine The homeless man and deportee field hand Are in the county hole doing illegal time All hail the American corrupt congressional Caesar Benedict Arnold in the people's capitol tower We render unto you more than seven times what you're due And you betray us with your corporate lobby dower From Oklahoma dust, family farms and inner city wastelands Harvest song from a distant shore of Galilee The grapes of wrath of we the people are fermenting In untamed hearts from sea to once shining sea You sit in fancy oak pews, hold anti-abortion rallies While human rights and liberties are trampled under You collect your stained glass tallies while the poor sleep in your alleys Just who the hell you're following causes all to stop and wonder Once home of the brave and land of the free America, 'tis of thee with one heart we sing For Washington, Lincoln, Roosevelt and Kennedy We cry "Cesar Chavez!" and "Martin Luther King!" The grapes of wrath are poisoned with chemical pollution They're rotting on the dry American vine The homeless man and deportee field hand Are in the county hole doing illegal time All hail the American corrupt congressional Caesar Benedict Arnold in the people's capitol tower We render unto you more than seven times what you're due And you betray us with your corporate lobby dower From Oklahoma dust, family farms and inner city wastelands Harvest song from a distant shore of Galilee The grapes of wrath of we the people are fermenting In untamed hearts from sea to once shining sea * United Farm Workers *FootNote:  Inspired by the late Cesar Chavez, a life dedicated to the great cause of Human and Civil Rights---of social justice, equality and freedom, The Grapes Of Wrath by John Steinbeck, perhaps America's greatest novel and The Wasteland by T.S. Eliot.  Along with the life of Cesar Chavez and The Wasteland, The Grapes of Wrath, which is far from fiction, should today be required reading in order to receive a high school diploma (as it once was in some American schools).             Copyright © August 20th, 2003 by Richard Aberdeen. No part of this material may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including printing, photocopying, recording or by any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the Publisher and signed by the author.  Inquiries should be addressed to: The Aberdeen Foundation, Brothers / Sisters Productions, 292 Trails Circle, Nashville, TN 37214 or requested via email at email@AberdeenFoundation.org.  Essays entitled Revolution and Revolution -- Side B are open copyright and may be reproduced or utilized as often as one likes.