This song by John Denver / James Oppenheim was inspired by a speech given in 1910 by textile striker Helen Todd, who wanted work to mean more than mere subsistence. She believed that the abundance of the world belongs to all, not just a privileged few. It rings truer than ever today, with all the unfairness and unrest in the world. I feel very blessed to have a garden in which to grow my roses, and an oven in which to bake bread.
Bread and Roses
As we go marching, marching
In the beauty of the day
A million darkened kitchens
A thousand mill lofts grey
Are touched with all the radiance
That a sudden sun discloses
For the people hear us singing
Bread and roses, bread and roses
As we go marching, marching
We battle too for men
For they are women’s children
And we mother them again
Our lives shall not be sweetened
From birth until life closes
Hearts starve as well as bodies
Give us bread, but give us roses
As we go marching, marching
We bring the greater days
For the rising of the women
Means the rising of the race
No more the drudge and idler
Ten that toil where one reposes
But the sharing of life’s glories
Bread and roses, bread and roses
