1989 | No recording
Gillian was a white girl.
She went to a white school.
She lived in a white town
House
Where the whites made all the rules.
Shona was a black girl.
She went to a black school.
She lived in a black town
Ship
Where the whites still made all the rules.
When we ignore what's wrong
And forget what's right
I'm ashamed to be white.
Shona went to church on Sunday.
And Gillian? Well she went too.
She knelt down on her knees with all the white folks
And learned how to pray - and it felt good.
Well, Shona went to a little shack
To hear what the black preacher man had to say.
The difference between him and the white priest
Was a four letter word, a four letter word called faith.
When we ignore what's wrong
And forget what's right
I'm ashamed to be white.
Shona opened my eyes.
She taught me how to see.
She taught me that the difference between the blacks and the whites
Was something that you couldn't see.
When we ignore what's wrong
And forget what's right
I'm ashamed to be white.
I wrote Gillian while working on the issue of South Africa at university. In a way, Israel reminds me of South Africa. Both the Israelis and the White South Africans make reference to God as a justification for oppressing a whole people. Those who took up arms to struggle against the might of both countries were called "terrorists".