from April 2000 issue of street roots

Forty One Bullets Chant

Read it in yuh paper, see it pon yuh TV
'bout de Diallo killin' inna New York City
Dem 'ave a inques', de facts a plain fe see
an' dem who a response, dem a not guilty
is jus' mistake dem mek, "mistaken identity"
an' de police get absolve, an' de killers walk free
an' Amadou lidung inna cemetery

It tek forty one bullets fe lick a man doun
Forty one bullets fe put a man inna de groun'

Amadou Diallo was a African man
decent, honest, doin' de best a man cyan
tradin' pon de streets an' dat doan easy
wukin' hard fe "im money an' 'im family
respected by 'im fren' dem an' de community
an' de verdict of de inques' is a damn travesty
an' a slap inna de face of 'im poor family

Me seh forty one bullets fe lick a man doun
Forty one bullets put a man inna de groun'

Listen weh me seh, listen very carefully
Tell I who a de nex' "mistaken identity"
'im was black like yuh or was it poor like me
or maybe poor like yuh or jus' black like me?
It could a be yuh, it could a be me
it could a be any one a we
fall victim to dem bullets an' dem brutality

Forty one bullets lick a man doun
Forty one bullets fe put a man inna de groun'

So now come a time fe true fe unity
'mongs' all decent people in de community
all black, white, red, brown man an' woman
all Rasta, Muslim an' all true Christian
mek we chant dem doun ev'ry time one a we
fall victim to de Forces of Brutality
Soon come reach an' de time come aroun'
fe put we feet inna de street an' fe chant dem doun

Chant forty one bullets lick a man doun
Forty one bullets fe put a man inna de groun'

Jack Tafari, Street Roots vendor #23