Pachucos Stance 1943

Raven locks slicked back and groomed

Tailored pants and sleeves ballooned

The pride and rebel cause exhumed

Confusion at Sleepy Lagoon

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Racism on a hate-filled mission

Sailors roam without permission

Violence forged with no submission

Law enforcement’s oath rescission

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Zoot Suiters strong defend their roots

Fuel the flames of street disputes

White supremacy in cahoots

The accusations we must refute

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Neighbors of a foreign land

Migration labor in demand

We march together to withstand

Our sense of style they seek to ban

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Labeled as unpatriotic

Riots ignite assumed chaotic

The Barrios are held hypnotic

Soldiers thirst for blood psychotic

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The Black Community at our side

No mob oppressors could divide

Bigotry prejudice collide

Lynch mob fury will not subside

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The fabric stripped and boys abused

Set ablaze no chance to choose

A sense of justice a simple ruse

A ticking bomb we can’t diffuse

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Pachuco’s in a Jaguar stance

The pool rooms or the local dance

In search of love perhaps romance

The history of our blood enhanced

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Dangling chains of watch precision

Segregation forced division

Exposure like a “Y” incision

American dream or off to prison

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The suit of which is truly regal

Freedom like a soaring eagle

Lost within the codes of penal

Obnoxiously, they’re still illegal