“Southern Man, When Will You Pay Them Back?”

Sources Of Reparation Thought In The Liberal White Imagination

No disrespect to the iconic writings of a long line of black intellectuals, from WEB DuBois to James Baldwin and Cornel West or the more recent popularizing writings of Ta-Nehisi Coates, but it was a white Canadian, Neil Young, who introduced the idea of reparations to US liberals (most of whom don’t read the works of black intellectuals) in his 1970 classic song “Southern Man”:

Southern man, better keep your head

Don’t forget what your good book said

Southern change gonna come at last

Now your crosses are burning fast

Southern man

I saw cotton and I saw black

Tall white mansions and little shacks

Southern man, when will you pay them back?

I heard screamin’ and bullwhips cracking

How long? How long? How long?

Southern man, better keep your head

Don’t forget what your good book said

Southern change gonna come at last

Now your crosses are burning fast

Southern man

Lily Belle, your hair is golden brown

I’ve seen your black man comin’ round

Swear by God I’m gonna cut him down

I heard screamin’ and bullwhips cracking

How long? How long? How long?