Minimum Wage

Traveled seven hundred miles Crossed the border to the States With a plastic bottle running Cross the desert in a shake Come to English only country Hidin' from the minutemen Come to make this place my home Run a long, long way from then Story of a lifetime For the minimum wage Well, they chased me through the desert Then the agents strapped me down Then they ask me why in Spanish Why you keep on comin' back? When I left my dad in Jersey And my sister in Des Moines They've been workin' in this country Pickin' lettuce, washing floors Story of a lifetime For the minimum wage Well, they raised me to eight dollars 'Cause I washed the dishes fast Well, the boss, he got me workin' On the porch and in the back Then I wash the dish and rinse it Then I go home late and sleep Well, I need to be awake now 'Cause I walk out in my sleep When I see that black van comin' Then I know I'm sure to run Goddamn them agents caught me Cuffed me on the spot For the minimum wage No one forced the boss to hire me But it's nearly been fifteen When I left my baby cryin' With a promise in my skin On the outskirts of L.A. I recite a native poem Million hands, ten thousand years It's the season for the crop It's my people doin' the pickin' In the valley of the dolls It's a decent job to work at Any day I'll take this job Ethiopian, Colombian, Pakistani, Cantonese Every man that I run into All the kitchens on the strip And they're pluggin' in them hours Smilin' in their dreams They're a long, long way from home now But they lookin' to be free California, Alabama and Missouri, Oregon They been workin' like their fathers were A long, long time ago For the minimum wage For the minimum wage For the minimum wage For, for, for, for the minimum wage It's a bumpy road to ride in But I'll take it anytime It's a bumpy road to take But I'll take it day It's a bumpy road to take But I'll take it anytime For the minimum wage