I Wasn’t Born Free

I wasn’t born free,

I was six when freedom walked out of prison to come find me,

I was too young to understand the system I had been living in,

Yet I was somehow aware of the shadows that system thrived in.

I wasn’t born free,

I was 10 when my grandmother voted X for democracy,

Later that year she lost her life,

But for those few short months, she had ‘equal rights’.

She was able to walk into any store, sunbathe on any shore,

But it didn’t take away the hurt from before,

Freedom found her too late,

Many of our people died before Mandela walked through that gate.

I wasn’t born free,

Can you tell, I’m a bit angry?

I was 11 before inclusivity took it’s first tentative steps towards me,

Then seemingly started walking in reverse,

As the darkness quietly enforced their separatist wars.

Apartheid done, they strategically promoted segregation,

Propaganda being the main diet of our nation,

Except we’re human, we (should) know what’s right,

Especially when freedom came after such a hard earned fight.

Yes the system cheated us, the system lied,

But now the system is over, and it’s time for us to rise.

No, I wasn’t born free,

But in my spirit I’ve always been,

Now I’m taking that gift of freedom and I’m shedding that old skin.

All that hurt and bitterness, that recurring kick in the teeth,

South Africa, you’re so far from perfect, but I can see what’s underneath.

You see, if I’m to wait for fairness and an equal voice,

I’ll die waiting while a new oppressor exerts his force,

For now I’ll stand, I’ll fight, I’ll struggle if I must,

To be heard, to advance, to insist on my rights.

So when the haters take aim,

And the shadows gather once more,

Remember how God brought us out of this, Mzansi,

That 100 years ago, on the banks of the Mbashe River,

That long walk started, so that we could all be free, as one, together.