The Champ

You are my oppressor when I want freedom
You are my oppressor when I want justice
You are my oppressor when I want equality
You are my oppressor but you don’t own me

When you were a kid, a thief stole your bike
And you wanted it back so you learned how to fight
There were a lot of thugs in your neighborhood
So you got really good at taking punches and giving them

You are my oppressor when I want freedom
You are my oppressor when I want justice
You are my oppressor when I want equality
You are my oppressor but you don’t own me

When you put a pair of boxing gloves on your hands
It was easy to see you would be a champ
You were proud of yourself too
Because you were good at what you do

And that made people afraid of you

When you came home from the Olympics in Rome
You were wearing a medal that was made of gold
But when they wouldn’t let you eat beside the white man
You took it off and threw it into the Ohio

They took away your title when you refused to fight
You said “Don’t tell me who’s my enemy, that’s for me to decide”
And for three years they didn’t let you step into the ring
Because you were a fighter and you fought for your beliefs

You said:
I’m not gonna go 10,000 miles from home
To kill some people that I don’t know
When my people here in Mobile are treated just like dogs
They’re denied the most basic human rights
There’s a war right here so I’m not going anywhere
No I’m not gonna take this fight
No I’m not gonna take this fight

You are my oppressor when I want freedom
You are my oppressor when I want justice
You are my oppressor when I want equality
You are my oppressor but you don’t own me