We Live In A Democratic Society Poem by Francis Duggan

We live in a democratic society so called it would seem to me
You are all right if you are wealthy and all wrong if you're a refugee
All you ask is a better way of life free of hardship and fear
But they lock you up in a prison and they ask you what brought you here?

We are a freedom loving people as we are often told
But we don't care about the homeless and we don't care about the old
And what worth is so called freedom if we are not fully free
Of the scourge of class distinction and the scourge of poverty.

We are patriotic people our wars we do recall
And we talk about a fair go but not a fair go for all
That person to us is different and our culture does not share
We only trust our own kind not people from elsewhere.

We live in a so called liberal society yet our own reflection we can't see
And we kid ourselves when we think that others know us for our generosity
Our Government is our mirror and they jail boat refugees
When they arrive in search of a better life from war torn Lands beyond the seas.