A Cotton Field Away

A child of three
Reaches out to touch
And only sees
Pretty powder puffs
Down the road
A black child plays
But the dreams he holds lie
A cotton field away
The fires burn bright
A window breaks
Another one dies
A momma’s heart aches
Behind locked doors
A white man prays
And thanks the Lord he lives
A cotton field away
If we could see
Beyond the clouds
We both might be
On common ground
We met in school
By court’s decree
I learned real soon
You were a lot like me
Across the land
They say things have changed
But still we stand
A cotton field away