Detainees
Lyrics © 2026 Marcy Matasick
- Tune
- Folsom Prison Blues
- Written by
- Marcy Matasick
- Gaggle
- Santa Fe
- Filed
- May 14, 2026
Gaggle credit as submitted: Santa Fe Raging Grannies
Familiar with the tune? Grab a hat, gather some friends, and sing it at your next action.
- Read the lyrics through once silently before singing.
- If the original tune is unfamiliar, look it up first.
- Modify freely. Every gaggle adapts songs to local issues.
I hear that gate a slammin’
behind those detainees
More workers, moms, and children
all wondering, “Why me?”
No charges, no convictions,
no reasons, only lies
They are rounded up like cattle
They don’t know if they’ll survive
A daddy counts missed birthdays
he’s feeling so alone
A child is crying “Momma,
why can’t we just go home?”
They hold onto their memories –
that’s all they get to keep
But the system wants to break them,
just for the cruelty
The new Trump 5-star gulag:
His brand is looking peak
There’s gourmet food with maggots
The uniforms are chic
That razor wire is gleaming
far as the eye can see
And it’s spreading like a cancer
across the land of the free
Oh, detainees, we hear you
The whole world feels your pain
We’ll carry you within our hearts
’til you come home again
The lies cannot define you
or steal your dignity
We will fight for truth and justice
until the day you are free
Free to sing, share, and print with credit to Marcy Matasick and the Santa Fe Raging Grannies. Not for sale. raginggrannies.org