There's a sadness in your singing I have never heard before
There's a dying in your living that exists from shore to shore
There's a coward in your character that I have never seen
America what happened to the promise and the dream.

The promise was that men could live and worship as they please
The dream was for the huddled masses yearning to breathe free
We closed so many doors and banned the prayers on many scenes
America what happened to the promise and the dream.

There's a numbness in your feeling for the disadvantaged poor
There's a weakness in your strenght because your leaders are unsure
There are shadows in the light that once was freedom's brightest beam
America what happened to the promise and the dream.

The promise was that men could live and worship as they please
The dream was for the huddled masses yearning to breathe free
You closed so many doors and banned the prayer on many scenes
America what happened to the promise and the dream.

There's a hating in your loving for the permanence of vows
Tomorrow doesn't matter it's all for the here and now
Your most important word called love is now a dirty thing
America what happened to the promise and the dream.

The promise was that men could live and worship as they please
The dream was for the huddled masses yearning to breathe free
You closed so many doors and banned the prayer on many scenes
America what happened to the promise and the dream...