The Picket Boogie

that’s what its all a - bout! We'll do the = Pi - chet

1 Boo- gie, We'll do the = Pi - cket Boo- gie, We'll do the

a - cket Boo- gie And that's what it's ail a -

bout - Yeah!

They keep the raises out, they put some cutbacks in,

The offer that they're making is a crying sin,

But we'll do the Picket Boogie and we'll tur it all around,

And that's what it's all about!

And that's what it’s all about - yeah!

The language that they put in keeps better pensions out,

We look at their proposals and we want to cry and shout,

Let's do the Picket Boogie and we'll turn it all around,

And that's what it's all about!

They rake the profits in until their pockets bulge out,

Then they say our kids and families can do without,

So we'll do the Picket Boogie and we'll turn it all around,

And that's what it's all about!

This song came out of the 18-month strike against Hormel Meal Products in

Austin, Minnesota, U.5.A., starting in August 1985. The strike was broken when

the workers’ union, the United Food and Commercial Workers, threw the striking

P-9 Local into receivership, The song was collected from Judy McCallen.

7 But when you live for peo fil|When you kill the land, ‘The

# weeds oof the poo- ple kee ont bo sogresd. So we my...

Now ev'ry moming when the sun came around,

The man in the white hat saunters down.

He puts the workers in a truck

And ships ‘em for another day's labor in the fields.

Now fourteen hours in the scorchin’ hot sun,

Ya know it ain't healthy, ya know it ain't fun.

You get hurt on the job and you're laid off;

The ones at the top say it's your own fault.

Now every night when the moon comes round,

The man in the white hat can't be found.

He leaves workers in their shacks, his poison in the ground

And he sneaks off to his condo in pre-fab town.

Well the earth is plenty, the earth is sweet;

Treat it right we'll have food to cat;

But to the man in the white hat it's a game,

‘Cause corporate rape is his middle name.

Now ev'ry farmer wil! tell you must rotate yer crops;

You take the protein out and don't put nothing back

And the erosion will never stop.

Now ev'ry citizen will tell you we must have food to cat

But when you live for profit, you kill the land.

The needs of the people lose out to greed.

Now ev-'ry citizen will tell you

We must have food to eat.

But when you live for profit

When you kill the land,

The needs of the peaple lose out to greed.

SO we say...