The Banks of Marble

the banks are made of marble
with a guard at every door
and the vaults are stuffed with silver
that the workers sweated for
throughout most of human history
society has been divided between the few
who have enormous wealth and enormous power
and the many who struggle each day
just to survive
the rich get richer
traveling about in their chauffeured limousines
and jets setting their way around the world
their exotic vacation places
and the poor get poorer
hundreds of millions of people throughout this planet
in Africa
in Asia
in Latin America
now face starvation
while millions more in our country
sleep out Ion the streets
most of the people in this world
work hard their entire lives
and end up with very little
others exploit that labor
and end up with millions

the banks are made of marble
with a guard at every door
and the vaults are stuffed with silver
that my brother sweated for

I've travelled around this country
from shore to shining shore
it really made me wonder
the things I heard and saw
I saw the weary farmer
a plowing sod alone
and I heard the auction hammer
just a knocking down his home

but the banks are made of marble
with a guard at every door
and the vaults are stuffed with silver
that my brother sweated for

I've seen the seamen standing
idly by the shore
and I've heard their bosses saying
got no work for you no more

but the banks are made of marble
with a guard at every door
and the vaults are stuffed with silver
that the seaman sweated for

I've seen the weary miners
scrubbing coal dust from his back
and I heard his children crying
got no coal to heat the shack

but the banks are made of marble
with a guard at every door
and the vaults are stuffed with silver
that my miners sweated for

I've seen my brothers working
throughout this mighty land
Anna I've prayed we'd get together
and together make a stand

but the banks are made of marble
with a guard at every door
and the vaults are stuffed with silver
that my brother sweated for

that we might own those banks is marble
with a guard at every door
and we would share those vaults of silver
that we have sweated for