Lupe Fiasco, Ayesha Jaco - Ayesha Says (Intro) lyrics

Hijabs, hoodies, afros, locks
Teddy bear, liquor bottle shrines, rocks
Tanks, prayer rugs, church pews
Mexican corn stands
Blood, sweat, and tears, police batons
Gas masks and bullets create
Graffiti on corners
Murals that salute freedom or
Death for liberty
Be it Englewood or Egypt, Bedstuy or Baghdad
Syria or Liberia
The west bank or the west side of Chicago
Where food and liquor stores
Still occupy the block
While police and community watchmen
Justify why they shot
Emmit Till and Malice Green
Rekia Boyd and Trayvon Martin
Better not wear that hoodie while
Shopping for a carton
Or whatever they sellin’ in your food desert
Cause your soul is dessert and
Will be dissected and consumed
On the Fox evening news while
We sing the blues

The New Jim Crow caged bird sings
Cause he’s tired of occupying his
Misery and of our marching
He wanna fly to a higher consciousness
But his school on academic probation
They gave him medicine
Diagnosed him with a felony
And mental retardation
So he refuses to cease the firin’
Nobody’s hirin’ in Illinois
67 is the new age when you retirin’
Class lines have blurred, those
Who used to have, have not
Pensions bein’ snatched
Those who never have keep
Their hands stretched
Social services being cut
Sterilization clinics giving out pills
To numb the womb
Young girls referring to their
Vaginas as tombs

Thinkin’ protests are temporary and trendy
Well rock a t-shirt and carry a poster
And two weeks later it’s back to normal
But they say times are changin’
The revolution is becoming second nature
Causes are combining
People carrying torches
Hope burning from their hands
Attaching explosive devices ‘cause they
Keep stealing their lands
In the name of freedom
Hijabs, hoodies, afros, locks
Teddy bear, liquor bottle shrines, rocks
Tanks, prayer rugs, church pews
Mexican corn stands
Blood, sweat, and tears, police batons
Gas masks and bullets create
Graffiti on corners