here's to the state of mississippi

here's to the state of mississippi

for underheath her borders

the devil draws no lines

if you drag her muddy river

nameless bodies you will find

whoa

the fat trees of the forest have hid a thousand crimes

the calendar is lyin' when it reads the present time

whoa

here's to the land you've torn out the heart of

mississippi find yourself another country to be part of

and here's to the people of mississippi

who say the folks up north

they just don't understand

and they tremble in their shadows at the thunder of the klan

the sweating of their souls can't wash the blood from off their hands

they smile and shrug their shoulders at the murder of a man

oh

here's to the land you've torn out the heart of

mississippi find yourself another country to be part of

and here's to the schools of mississippi

where they're teaching all the children that they don't have to care

all the rudiments of hatred are present everywhere

and every single classroom is a factory of despair

there's nobody learning such a foreign word as fair

oh

here's to the land you've torn out the heart of

mississippi find yourself another country to be part of

and here's to the cops of mississippi

they're chewing their tobacco as they lock the prison door

their bellies bounce inside them when they knock you to the floor

no they don't like taking prisoners in their private little war

behind their broken badges there are murderers and more

oh

here's to the land you've torn out the heart of

mississippi find yourself another country to be part of

and

here's to the judges of mississippi

who wear the robe of honor as they crawl into the court

they're guarding all the bastions of their phony legal fort

oh

justice is a stranger when the prisoners report

when the black man stands accused the trial is always short

oh

here's to the land you've torn out the heart of

mississippi find yourself another country to be part of

and here's to the government of mississippi

in the swamp of their bureaucracy they're always bogging down

and criminals are posing as the mayors of the towns

and they hope that no one sees the sights and no one hears the sounds

and the speeches of the governor are the ravings of a clown

oh

here's to the land you've torn out the heart of

mississippi find yourself another country to be part of

and here's to the laws of mississippi

congressmen will gather in a circus of delay

while the constitution is drowning in an ocean of decay

unwed mothers should be sterilized

i've even heard them say

yes

corruption can be classic in the mississippi way

oh

here's to the land you've torn out the heart of

mississippi find yourself another country to be part of

and here's to the churches of mississippi

where the cross

once made of silver

now is caked with rust

and the sunday morning sermons pander to their lust

the fallen face of jesus is choking in the dust

heaven only knows in which god they can trust

oh

here's to the land you've torn out the heart of

mississippi find yourself another country to be part of