Down in Alabama, 1955
Not many of us here tonight were then alive;
A young Baptist preacher led a bus boycott
He led the way for a brand new day without firing a shot

Don't say it can't be done
The battle's just begun
Take it from Dr. King
You too can learn to sing
So drop the gun

Oh those must have been an exciting 13 years
Young heroes, young heroines
There was laughter, there were tears
Students at lunch counters
Even dancing in the streets
To think it all started with sister Rosa
Refusing to give up her seat

Song, songs, kept them going and going;
They didn't realize the millions of seeds they were sowing
They were singing in marches, even singing in jail
Songs gave them the courage to believe they would not fail

We sang about Alabama 1955
But since 9-11 we wonder will this world survive
The world learned a lesson from Dr. King:
We can survive, we can, we will
And so we sing —
Don't say it can't be done
The battle's just begun
Take it from Dr. King
You too can learn to sing
So drop the gun