I am not a poet by any stretch of the imagination, nor I an English Major. Thanks to the computer, I can now spell. I am a Somerville resident for the past six years. I started this poem as a parody to Bruce Springsteen’s song Born in the U.S.A. and as I progressed with the poem I kept rewriting and adding words (about 20 times) and then changed the title to Born and Raised in the U.S.A. During the rewriting and reading what I wrote, I realized to my surprise that the poem was, for the most part, in chronological order. Thanks to my Cousin Patty who was a big part in the finishing of the poem with ideas and words that I needed to complete the poem. Thanks again for reading my poem.

Born and Raised in the U.S.A.

We were keepers of the country yesterday; it was our job to keep the country from going astray

Our government said it was ok to kill the Native American, men woman and children alike

Shoot them where they stand and let them die where they lie, until they were almost all gone away

We killed the Bison, took away their way of life and stole their land

No food to eat, no place to call home, no clothes to make, it was all done by hand

No need to shed a tear, it’s already been done, there’s a trail of them

Born and Raised in the U.S.A.

We were told to fight against each other; the North and South could not get together

Hundreds of thousands of fathers and brothers must die before we see eye to eye

The Emancipation Proclamation is not for jubilation

Even today race equality is still in the makin’

Born and Raised in the U.S.A.

We are the superpowers of the world today

We need to keep the world from going astray

We fight for freedom and for the poor

Not even Germany could even the score

Born and Raised in the U.S.A.

Our leaders tell us its ok to kill the Yellow man, however we can

Not once or twice but three times a charm

Until we’re told “no more fighting, put down your arms”

Born and Raised in the U.S.A.

There’s an uneasy peace for a little while but we’re still looking over our leery cold shoulder

Until it’s time to become a soldier

We go to war against Iraq and Iran and to help restore peace with Afghanistan

Born and Raised in the U.S.A

There’s terrorism around the world today

We hear about September 11th and bombings everyday

And it’s our job to keep the world from going astray

It’s our job to keep the world in order when we can’t even watch our own boarders

I love my country; it’s the best place to be

But these politicians are making it hard for me

We’re losing the war; let’s stick to the battle at home.

— Wayne Lee