We’ve updated our Terms of Use to reflect our new entity name and address. You can review the changes here.
We’ve updated our Terms of Use. You can review the changes here.

A Song For My Professor

from Songs For Today by David Rovics

/

about

There's much more that could be said about Pete Bohmer, but here are a few things.

lyrics

I first met him at a place I once knew well
Where he's taught for several decades, where I went for a spell
When I once studied Political Economy
I attended all his lectures back in 1993
And every year since then you'll hear in those halls
The Labor Theory of Value explained between those walls
The kind of sharp analysis that strikes fear in the oppressor
So let me sing a song for my professor

When I first met him his kids were only tots
Fast forward to the present, they grew up a lot
Which is impressive when you think of San Diego State
What almost happened to him and what happened to his roommate
When someone opened fire on the house they lived in
During the Vietnam War, they railroaded him to prison
Almost taken out by Cointelpro, he almost didn't have successors
So let me sing a song for my professor

When I first met him I just had to grin
As soon as he started talking I thought I was in Brooklyn
In English or in Spanish, he speaks a special version
Reflection of his childhood, NYC immersion
The place his parents came to when they fled genocide
Managing to make it to the other side
Just part of who he is, if I'm being the assessor
Let me sing a song for my professor

When I first met him he took students overseas
To meet some of the State Department's favorite enemies
Friend of socialism, foe of the elite
Never held elected office but he occupied a seat
They tried to get him fired, run him out of town
That little effort failed, the government backed down
To the man who rose this morning, put the jeans on off his dresser
Let me sing a song for my professor

credits

from Songs For Today, released June 21, 2019

license

tags

about

David Rovics Portland, Oregon

Singer/songwriter, writer, podcaster (on Spotify, Substack & Patreon), anarchist, dad, lover of life.

shows

contact / help

Contact David Rovics

Streaming and
Download help

Report this track or account

David Rovics recommends:

If you like David Rovics, you may also like: