Take the Power Back
Rage Against the Machine Lyrics

In the right light, study becomes insight
With the ideal frame of reference, learning becomes understanding.

But the system that dissed us
However, the establishment that rejected us

Teaches us to read and right
Instructs us in basic reading and writing skills

So-called facts are fraud
What they present as incontrovertible truth is fabricated.

They want us to allege and pledge
They want us to pledge our allegiance and conform.

And bow down to their God
They demand we submit to their ideologies by respecting them as god-like.

Lost the culture, the culture lost
We've lost our identities, and so has society as a whole.

Spun our minds and through time
Our minds have been manipulated, and this has continued through generations.

Ignorance has taken over
Due to this manipulation, people are becoming more ignorant.

Yo, we gotta take the power back!
We must reclaim power and ownership of our lives and identities.

Bam! Here's the plan
Suddenly, a plan is formulated

Motherfuck Uncle Sam
Let's reject the government

Step back, I know who I am
I'll take control and fully embrace my authentic identity.

Raise up your ear, I'll drop the style and clear
Listen closely, I’m speaking honestly.

It's the beats and the lyrics they fear
Those in power are afraid of what we can say through music.

The rage is relentless
The anger felt by oppressed people is never-ending.

We need a movement with a quickness
We need to enact societal change quickly.

You are the witness of change
You must be present to see the transformation.

And to counteract
In order to combat the issue

We gotta take the power back
We must seize agency for our own lives.

The present curriculum
The current educational program.

I put my fist in 'em
I'm fiercely against it.

Eurocentric every last one of 'em
It revolves entirely around Western civilization.

See right through the red, white and blue disguise
We can recognize that political propaganda follows this specific rhetoric.

With lecture, I puncture the structure of lies
Through education, I can subvert the dominant ideology.

Installed in our minds and attempting
Ingrained into our mentalities and aims

To hold us back
Limit our potential

Holes in our spirit causin' tears and fears
We're left feeling incomplete and traumatized.

One-sided stories for years and years and years
We've been subjected to a one-sided, biased narrative for far too long.

I'm inferior? Who's inferior?
I'm supposed to be inferior? According to whom?

Yeah, we need to check the interior
We must investigate the ideologies at the core of our society.

Of the system that cares about only one culture
The institutions care only about Western customs.

And that is why
Explaining the previous statement

We gotta take the power back
We must reclaim our autonomy.

Hey yo check, we're gonna have to break it, break it, break it down
Listen, we have to break down the corrupt system.

Aw shit!
Dang!

Ugh!
Sigh.

And like this Ugh!
Going in with that energy!

Come on, yeah! Bring it back the other way!
Let's switch it up and go in a new direction.

The teacher stands in front of the class
The educator is positioned in front of the students.

But the lesson plan he can't recall
However, the teacher cannot remember their planned lesson.

The student's eyes don't perceive the lies
The pupils can't recognize the propaganda.

Bouncing off every fucking wall
It reverberates throughout the room.

His composure is well kept
The teacher's demeanor remains professional.

I guess he fears playing the fool
Perhaps he's afraid of being unpersuasive.

The complacent students sit and listen to some of that
The passive students listen to this indoctrination.

Bullshit that he learned in school
Falsehoods he was also taught during his own education.

Europe ain't my rope to swing on
I don't relate to European culture.

Can't learn a thing from it
There's nothing I can gain from it.

Yet we hang from it
But it still has significant influence over our lives.

Gotta get it, gotta get it together then
We must unify to overcome it.

Like the motherfuckin' weathermen
Similar to the activists of the Weather Underground.

To expose and close the doors on those who try
We must uncover and prevent those attempting to manipulate.

To strangle and mangle the truth
To restrain and warp the facts.

'Cause the circle of hatred continues unless we react
Otherwise, hate will persist if we don't respond.

We gotta take the power back
We must seize our power and autonomy.

No more lies
We must eliminate deceit.

Ugh!
Sigh.

Yeah!
Positive affirmation.

Take it back y'all
Reclaim it, everyone.

Take it back, a-take it back
Take it back, let's take back

A-take it back y'all, come on!
Everyone, let's take it back, come on!

Ugh!
Sigh.

Yeah!
Positive affirmation.