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On the Train

from Ballad of a Wobbly by David Rovics

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The day a sociopath stabbed three people on a MAX train in Portland, Oregon, killing two.

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It was another Friday afternoon, just after 4 o'clock
The train trundled through the city, block by block
The MAX was full of people of most every class and creed
Shoppers, workers, travelers, graduates of Reed
Christians, Buddhists, atheists, Jews and Muslims, too
All aboard the Green Line to 42nd Avenue
But now many will remember that 26th of May
At least anyone who took the train that day

Some were coming from the airport, visiting the state
Some were getting off from work and heading for a date
Some were going to a party for the start of Ramadan
Some were heading to a meetup for fans of Comic Con
Some were looking for a strip club, some for a Big Mac
One racist thug was looking for someone to attack
He chose two teenage girls to hear the things he had to say
As he shouted at them on the train that day

The Nazi spewed his hatred, the veins bulging in his face
Yelling at two girls of a different race
No one knew beforehand, today would be a test
Or what might next have happened, but for Meche, Fletcher, Best
We can ask where he came from when all is done and said
Why he was so inspired by the ideas inside his head
But what we know for sure is two men lost their lives this way
That's what happened on the train that day

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from Ballad of a Wobbly, released December 11, 2017

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David Rovics Portland, Oregon

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

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