A Poem for Bruce Springsteen

A tribute to The Boss, a legend who took down a fascist

My Fellow Democracy Defenders,

The Boss owns the orange menace. He is a brave warrior against fascism. My heart is so full when musicians and entertainers stand up for our freedoms. During a performance in Manchester, England, Bruce gave a speech about hope. I have written a poem inspired by his prose. At the end, I have provided a transcript of his words as well.

Please remember how many public servants are suffering. My partner was fired from her DEI civil service career. Your support will help us with lawsuits against the fascists and take care of our non-binary child. Have a great long-weekend!

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The Boss of Democracy

From Jersey shore, a voice rings true and deep,
Where anthems rise and common promises to keep.
Not just a rocker, with a guitar's fiery grace,
But a brave defender, for humanity's sacred space.

His songs, a roadmap of the American plight,
The working man's struggle, burning ever bright.
He sees the cracks, the burdens that oppress,
And sings for justice, with a powerful tenderness.

No tyrant's shadow can diminish his loud plea,
For dignity, for truth, for all the world to see.
He calls out power, when it veers from what is right,
A beacon shining, through the darkest political night.

With every lyric, a ballot cast, a choice declared,
For every citizen, whose freedoms must be shared.
He walks the line, where empathy and purpose meet,
Challenging silence, with a rhythm hard to beat.

His stage a pulpit, his melody a shield,
Protecting principles, on democracy's field.
He reminds us always, what we're fighting to defend:
The right to speak, to vote, until the bitter end.

So listen close, when his powerful voice takes flight,
It's more than music; it's a stand for day and night.
Bruce Springsteen, the Boss, a true and steady hand,
A brave defender, for this fragile, promised land.

---

Springsteen’s speech in Manchester:

Good evening. It's great to be in Manchester and back in the UK. Welcome to The Land of Hope and Dreams Tour. The mighty E Street Band is here tonight to call upon the righteous power of art, of music, of rock and roll in dangerous times.

In my home, the America I love, the America I've written about that has been a beacon of hope and liberty for 250 years, is currently in the hands of a corrupt, incompetent, and treasonous administration.

Tonight, we ask all who believe in democracy and the best of our American experience to rise with us. Raise your voices against authoritarianism and let freedom ring.

The last check on power, after the checks and balances of government have failed, are the people, you and me. It's in the union of people around a common set of values. Now that's all that stands between democracy and authoritarianism.

So at the end of the day, all we've really got is each other.

Now, there's some very weird, strange and dangerous shit going on out there right now.

In America, they are persecuting people for using their right to free speech and voicing their dissent. This is happening now.

In America, the richest men are taking satisfaction in abandoning the world's poorest children to sickness and death. This is happening now.

In my country, they're taking sadistic pleasure in the pain that they inflict on loyal American workers, they're rolling back historic Civil Rights legislation that led to a more just and plural society, they're abandoning our great allies and siding with dictators against those struggling for their freedom.

They're defunding American universities that won't bow down to their ideological demands. They're removing residents off American streets and, without due process of law, are deporting them to foreign detention centers and prisons. This is all happening now.

A majority of our elected representatives have failed to protect the American people from the abuses of an unfit president and a rogue government.

They have no concern or idea of what it means to be deeply American. The America that I've sung to you about for 50 years is real, and regardless of its faults, is a great country with a great people.

So we'll survive this moment.

Now, I have hope because I believe in the truth of what the great American writer James Baldwin said. He said, in this world, there isn't as much humanity as one would like. But there's enough.