White Man
Queen Lyrics

I'm a simple man
I am a man of humble origins, uneducated and with no great pretensions.

With a simple name
I have a plain, unremarkable moniker. Nothing fancy or imaginative.

From this soil my people came
My ancestors have lived and worked on this land for as long as anyone can remember.

In this soil remain
We still live and work on this land, taking care of it as best we can.

We made us our shoes
We fashioned our own footwear from the resources available to us.

We trod soft on the land
We respected the natural world, taking care not to disturb its delicate balance.

But the immigrant built roads
However, newcomers to our land disrupted the tranquility we had established by constructing roads and other structures.

On our blood and sand
In the process, they spilled the blood of our people and scarred the landscape we hold dear.

White man, White man
This is a direct address to those who have come to our land and altered the way of life we had previously known.

Don't you see the light behind your blackened skies
The artist asks the newcomers to open their eyes to the damage they have caused to our environment and society.

You took away the sight to blind my simple eyes
The singer laments that the bright future we once imagined has been obscured by the short-sighted actions of others.

Where you gonna hide
The artist is suggesting that the newcomers cannot escape the consequences of their actions.

From the hell you've made ?
The singer is saying that the destruction wrought by the newcomers is a kind of hellish nightmare that we must now live with.

Oh the Red man knows war
The singer points out that Native Americans have a long history of conflict with European colonizers.

With his hands and his knives
The Natives were able to craft weapons and tools from the resources around them and use them to great effect.

On the bible you swore
The artist is referring to the fact that many colonizers justified their actions through a religious framework.

Fought your battle with lies
Despite these claims, the colonizers used dishonest and manipulative tactics to achieve their ends.

Leave my body in shame
Even in death, Native Americans were often treated with disrespect and disregard.

Leave my soul in disgrace
The singer is referencing the idea that Natives were viewed as heathen and uncivilized by the colonizers, despite having their own rich culture and traditions.

But by every God's name
The artist implores the colonizers to consider their own belief systems and values when interacting with another culture.

Say your prayers for your race
The artist is suggesting that the colonizers should seek guidance and wisdom from their own religious traditions to find a better way to interact with others.

Our country was green and all our rivers wide
The artist is painting a picture of a pristine and beautiful land prior to the arrival of the colonizers.

You came with a gun and soon our children died
The newcomers brought violence and destruction, leading to the loss of countless lives and a way of life that had lasted for centuries.

Don't you give a light for the blood you've shed
The artist is asking the colonizers to consider the lives lost and the suffering they have caused in the name of their own economic or political agendas.

Take a look around
The singer is asking the colonizers to see the world from a different perspective, one that acknowledges the value and dignity of other cultures.

Every skin and bone
The singer is highlighting the diversity of human experience and pointing out that we are all equal in the eyes of our Creator.

What is left of your dream ?
The singer is questioning the legacy and impact of the colonizers' actions, and whether they have lived up to their own ideals and aspirations.

Just the words on your stone
The artist is suggesting that the colonizers' grandiose claims and promises have amounted to nothing more than an empty memorial or epitaph.

A man who learned how to teach
The artist is referencing the fact that the colonizers saw themselves as authorities and leaders, with a right to teach and instruct others.

Then forgot how to learn
Despite their claims of enlightenment, the colonizers failed to truly listen and understand the perspectives of those they encountered.