The Courtesy Vote

[Verse 1]
The county fan chops the August air
We wear our Sunday clothes to sit and stare
At a man in a suit, his smile so bright
He says, "This is progress, folks, it's only right."
We feel the heat from the sticky vinyl chair
And smell the history in the mimeograph air.

[Chorus]
And we nod our heads so polite and slow
For the handsome man's water where we can't go
It's the courtesy vote, a salt-sweetened show
We know which way the river's gonna flow

[Verse 2]
He's got a map that glares under the light
Shows marina slips where we used to cast at night
We see the creeks where our grandmothers prayed
Now the dotted line of a six-lane grade
And we don't say much, just let him talk his fill
Like a summer storm comin' over the hill.

[Chorus]
And we nod our heads so polite and slow
For the handsome man's water where we can't go
It's the courtesy vote, a salt-sweetened show
We know which way the river's gonna flow

[Bridge]
(Lead) They say our silence is the same as yes
(Harmonies) But da tide keeps what da tide won't bless
(Lead) They call our names and we don't make a fuss
(Whispers) 'cause there's a million ghosts standin' here with us...

[Outro]
The meeting's over, they lock the hall door
We are who we were the day before.