Different tunes, but the same song

Child abuse has been around since the Fall of man. It's nothing new. But it's still just as devastating and warped as ever. Here are some modern songs to help us ponder the effects of abuse, neglect, and even divorce of the young, innocent, and helpless. Cyclical patterns, hatred and rage, self-debasement, fear, insecurity, suicide . . . sin has brutal effects, especially when perpetuated against children by those who are meant to protect, guide, and love them.

Independence Day
(by Martina McBride)

Well she seemed all right by dawn's early light
Though she looked a little worried and weak.
She tried to pretend he wasn't drinkin' again
But daddy left the proof on her cheek.
And I was only eight years old that summer,
And I always seemed to be in the way.
So I took myself down to the fair in town
On Independence Day.

Well word gets around in a small, small town.
They said he was a dangerous man,
But Mama was proud and she stood her ground;
She knew she was on the losin' end.
Some folks whispered, some folks talked
But everybody looked the other way,
And when time ran out, there was no one about
On Independence Day.

(Chorus)
Let freedom ring, let the white dove sing.
Let the whole world know that
Today is a day of reckoning.
Let the weak be strong, let the right be wrong.
Roll the stone away, let the guilty pay,
ItÂ’s independence day.

Well she lit up the sky that fourth of July.
By the time the firemen come
They just put out the flames and took down some names
And sent me to the county home.
Now I aint sayin' it's right or it's wrong
But maybe it's the only way.
Talk about your revolution,
It'sindependencee Day

(Chorus)
Let freedom ring, let the white dove sing.
Let the whole world know that
Today is a day of reckoning.
Let the weak be strong, let the right be wrong .
Roll the stone away, let the guilty pay,
ItÂ’s independence day.
Roll the stone away. It's Independence Day.


Janie's Got a Gun
(by Aerosmith)

Janie's got a gun, Janies got a gun .
Her whole world's come undone,
From looking straight at the sun.
What did her daddy do?
What did he put you through?
They said when Janie was arrested,
They found him underneath a train,
But man he had it coming, now that Janie's got a gun
She ain't never gonna be the same.

Janie's got a gun. Janie's got a gun
Her dog day's just begun,
Now everybody is on the run.
Tell me now it's untrue. What did her daddy do?
He jacked a little bitty baby;
The man has got to be insane.
They say the spell that he was under,
The lightning and the thunder,
Knew that someone had to stop the rain.

Run away, run away from the pain.
Yeah, yeah, Yeah, yeah
Run away, run away from the pain.
Yeah, yeah, Yeayeah yeahah Yeah, yeah
Run away, run away, run, run away.............................

Janie's got a gun, Janie's got a gun.
Her dog day's just begun.
Now everybody's on the run.
What did her daddy do?
It's Janie's last I.O.U.
She had to take him down easy
And put a bullet in his brain.
She said 'cause nobody believes me;
The man was such a sleaze.
He aint never gonna be the same

Father Of Mine
(by Everclear)
Father of mine, tell me where have you been.
You know I just closed my eyes,
My whole world disappeared.
Father of mine, take me back to the day
When I was still your golden boy,
Back before you went away.
I remember the blue skies, walking the block;
I loved it when you held me high.
I loved to hear you talk.
You would take me to the movie.
You would take me to the beach,
Take me to a place inside that is so hard to reach.
Father of mine, tell me where did you go.
You had the world inside your hand,
But you did not seem to know.
Father of mine, Tell me what do you see
When you look back at your wasted life and you don't see me?
I was ten years old, doing all that I could.
It wasn't easy for me to be a scared white boy in a black neighborhood.
Sometimes you would send me a birthday card with a five dollar bill.
I never understood you then and I guess I never will.

(Chorus)
Daddy gave me a name.
My dad, he gave me a name,
Then he walked away.
Daddy gave me a name
Then he walked away.
My dad gave me a name.

Father of mine, tell me where have you been.
I just closed my eyes, and the world disappeared.
Father of mine, tell me how do you sleep
With the children you abandoned
And the wife I saw you beat?
I will never be safe. I will never be sane.
I will always be weird inside;
I will always be lame.
Now I am a grown man
With a child of my own.
And I swear I'm not going to let her know
All the pain I have known.

Sing For The Moment
(by Eminem)

These ideas are nightmares to white parents
Whose worst fear is a child with dyed hair and who likes earrings.
Like whatever they say has no bearing,;
It's so scary in a house that allows no swearing
To see him walking around with his headphones blaring
Alone in his own zone, cold and he don't care.
He's a problem child, and what bothers him all comes out,
When he talks about His f****** dad walkin' out
'Cause he just hates him so bad that he blocks him out.
If he ever saw him again he'd probably knock him out.
His thoughts are whacked; he's mad so he's talkin' back,
Talkin' black, brainwashed from rock and rap.
He sags his pants, do-rags and a stocking cap.
His step-father hit him, so he socked him back, and broke his nose.
His house is a broken home; there's no control; he just let's his emotions go.

(Chorus)
Sing with me, sing for the years, sing for the laughter, sing for the tears.
Sing it with me, just for today, maybe tomorrow the good Lord will take you away...

. . .

That's why we sing for these kids, who don't have a thing
Except for a dream, and a f****** rap magazine
Who post pin-up pictures on their walls all day long,
Idolize they favorite rappers and know all they songs.
Or for anyone who's ever been through sh** in their lives
Till they sit and they cry at night wishin' they'd die.
Till they throw on a rap record and they sit, and they vibe.
. . .


Family Portrait
(by Pink)

Momma please stop cryin, I can't stand the sound.
Your pain is painful, and its tearin' me down.
I hear glasses breakin' as I sit up in my bed;
I told dad you didn't mean those nasty things you said.
You fight about money, 'bout me and my brother,
And this I come home to, this is my shelter.

(Chorus)
It ain't easy growin up in World War III,
Never knowin what love could be.
You'll see I don't want love to destroy me like it has done my family.
Can we work it out? Can we be a family?
I promise I'll be better, Mommy. I'll do anything.
Can we work it out? Can we be a family?
I promise I'll be better, Daddy; please don't leave.

Daddy please stop yellin', I can't stand the sound.
Make mama stop cryin', cuz I need you around.
My mama she loves you, no matter what she says, its true.
I know that she hurts you, but remember I love you, too.
I ran away today, ran from the noise, ran away.
Don't wanna go back to that place, but don't have no choice, no way.

In our family portrait, we look pretty happy.
Let's play pretend; let's act like it comes naturally.
I don't wanna have to split the holidays.
I don't want two addresses. I don't want a step-brother anyways.
And I don't want my mom to have to change her last name.
In our family portrait we look pretty happy.
We look pretty normal; let's go back to that.
In our family portrait we look pretty happy.
Let's play pretend, act like it goes naturally.
In our family portrait we look pretty happy.
(Can we work it out? Can we be a family?)
We look pretty normal, let's go back to that.
. . .
Daddy don't leave. Daddy don't leave. Daddy don't leave. Turn around please.
Remember that the night you left you took my shining star?
Daddy don't leave. Daddy don't leave. Daddy don't leave. Don't leave us here alone.
Mom will be nicer. I'll be so much better. I'll tell my brother.
Oh, I won't spill the milk at dinner. I'll be so much better,
I'll do everything right. I'll be your little girl forever; I'll go to sleep at night.

Youth of the Nation
(by P.O.D.)

Last day of the rest of my life
I wish I would’ve known
Cause I didn’t kiss my mama goodbye.
I didn’t tell her that I loved her and how much I care
Or thank my Pops for all the talks and all the wisdom he shared.
Unaware, I just did what I always do
Everyday, the same routine before I skate off to school.
But who knew that this day wasn’t like the rest?
Instead of taking a testI took two to the chest.
Call me blind, but I didn’t see it coming.
Everybody was running but I couldn’t hear nothing
Except gun blasts; it happened so fast.
I don’t really know this kid though I sit by him in class.
Maybe this kid was reaching out for love
Or maybe for a moment he forgot who he was.
Or maybe this kid just wanted to be hugged.
Whatever it was, I know it’s because . . .

(Chorus)
We are, we are, the youth of the nation.
We are, we are, the youth of the nation.
We are, we are, the youth of the nation
We are, we are, the youth of the nation.

Little Suzy, she was only twelve.
She was given the world with every chance to excel.
Hang with the boys and hear the stories they tell,
She might act kind of proud but no respect for herself.
She finds love in all the wrong places,
The same situations just different faces.
Changed up her pace since her daddy left her
Too bad he never told her she deserved much better.

Johnny boy always played the fool.
He broke all the rules so you would think he was cool.
He was never really one of the guys
No matter how hard he tried. Often thought of suicide.
It’s kind of hard when you ain’t got no friends.
He put his life to an end; they might remember him then.
You cross the line, and there’s no turning back.
Told the world how he felt with the sound of a gat.

(Chorus)

Who’s to blame for the lives that tragedies claim?
No matter what you say it don’t take away the pain
That I feel inside; I’m tired of all the lies.
Don’t nobody know why. It’s the blind leading the blind.
I guess that’s the way the story goes.
Will it ever make sense? Somebody’s got to know.
There’s got to be more to life than this.
There’s got to be more to everything I thought exists