It's been nearly a year since I wrote a column here about my own mostly failed attempt to write a folk song protesting Donald Trump's assault on
the American people, the rule of law and democracy. Thankfully, a legit folk artist has done just that.
Borrowing from the legacy of Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger and Bob Dylan, Bruce
Springsteen just released a new protest anthem, "The Streets of Minneapolis." Watch it above.
"I wrote this song on Saturday, recorded it yesterday and released it to you today in response to
the state terror being visited on the city of Minneapolis," the Boss wrote on his Instagram account and presumably other media. "It's dedicated to the people of Minneapolis, our innocent immigrant
neighbors and in memory of Alex Pretti and Renee Good. -- Stay free."
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And for anyone wondering why I'm posting this in a blog about political media and marketing published by an ad trade
publisher, need I remind you that folk songs are one of earliest and most profound forms of political media.
Makes me wish I could write and perform music and carry a tune.
For those who
don't have time to watch/listen, here are the lyrics to Springsteen's new song:
Through the winter’s ice and cold
Down Nicollet Avenue
A
city aflame fought fire and ice
‘Neath an occupier’s boots
King Trump’s private army from the DHS
Guns belted to their coats
Came to Minneapolis to enforce the law
Or so their story goes
Against smoke and rubber bullets
By the dawn’s early light
Citizens stood for justice
Their voices ringing through the night
And there were bloody footprints
Where mercy should have stood
And two dead left to die on snow-filled streets
Alex Pretti and Renee Good
Oh our Minneapolis, I hear your voice
Singing
through the bloody mist
We’ll take our stand for this land
And the stranger in our midst
Here in our home they killed and roamed
In the winter of ’26
We’ll remember the names of those who died
On the streets of Minneapolis
Trump’s federal
thugs beat up on
His face and his chest
Then we heard the gunshots
And Alex Pretti lay in the snow, dead
Their claim was self
defense, sir
Just don’t believe your eyes
It’s our blood and bones
And these whistles and phones
Against Miller and
Noem’s dirty lies
Oh our Minneapolis, I hear your voice
Crying through the bloody mist
We’ll remember the names of those who
died
On the streets of Minneapolis
Now they say they’re here to uphold the law
But they trample on our rights
If
your skin is black or brown my friend
You can be questioned or deported on sight
In chants of ICE out now
Our city’s heart and soul
persists
Through broken glass and bloody tears
On the streets of Minneapolis
Oh our Minneapolis, I hear your voice
Singing through the bloody mist
Here in our home they killed and roamed
In the winter of ’26
We’ll take our stand for this
land
And the stranger in our midst
We’ll remember the names of those who died
On the streets of Minneapolis
We’ll
remember the names of those who died
On the streets of Minneapolis