Bow Your Head Poem by Ahmed Fouad Negm

Bow your head, bow
You are in a democratic country
We bless you with freedom
Under the condition that you bow

If you work with integrity
Fearful for the fate of society
Your work will be riddled with futility
Because only the lowly can rise
Bow your head, bow
You are in a democratic country

When its defenders are its thieves
And they throw the country behind their backs
Devouring all that's in their way
Protected by an officer's uniform
Bow your head, bow
You are in a democratic country

When you're hard earned is not yours
Poverty blocking all your paths
You turn to look around
Only to find thieves and crooks
Bow your head, bow
You are in a democratic country

When you find in other lands
That a human being is something else
You are in an underclass
Like a chained monkey or a bat
Bow your head, bow
You are in a democratic country

When the ignorant are ahead of you
Or above you, holding you by a leash
And drive you to your ruin
And you drink from the Socratic poison
Bow your head, bow
You are in a democratic country

When only a word convicts you
When you hide within your heart your faith
When I see the humiliation in your eyes
Add your frustrations to my frustrations
Bow your head, bow
You are in a democratic country

Translated by:Walaa Quisay