The Young Are at the Gates Songtext
von Shaina Taub

I won′t forget that frigid January morning
When my heart was in my stomach
At the President's front door

I could barely feel my toes
But my spirit was on fire

With the thrill of trying something
No one′s ever done before

I could feel my shoulders tighten
So unsure how this would go
But we vowed to keep a vigil here
To let the old men know

The young are at the gates
The young are at the gates
Open up, the future's here
The young are at the gates

The young are at the gates
The young are at the gates
Tyranny, your time is near
The young are at the gates


At first, we feared
We were too few to keep this going
How could such a little army
Go on standing in the cold?
But day by day more women came
From all corners of the country

I could feel a hum of hope
Each time a new one joined the fold
We got nurses from Virginia
College girls from Michigan and Idaho
And we weren't all young, you know?
We got workers from the factory
Teachers from New York

Even Mary Church Terrell came through
I brought my daughter too

And what started as a dozen
Turned to hundreds within weeks
Standing there with standing stares
With icy air upon our cheeks
Though not a word was spoken
Our volume only grew
As winter turned to spring
We never left the avenue


The young are at the gates
The young are at the gates
Open up, the future′s here
The young are at the gates

The young are at the gates (the young are at the gates)
The young are at the gates (the young are at the gates)
Tyranny, your time is here
The young are at the gates

April sixth, 1917
Wilson declares war on Germany

Alice, we can′t do this anymore
If we go out there now, they might arrest us
They might
But Inez died trying to finish this fight
So are we going to give up?
Or are we going to make damn sure her sacrifice was worth it?

I won't forget
That muggy April morning
As we took our place
A crowd of scowling men began to form

Ten policemen lurked nearby
Holding billy clubs and smirking
I could feel us start to panic
Like a fast approaching storm

But then suddenly we felt it
Like a mighty cannon blast
Every cost and battle lost of every generation past
So we rose up in defiance
Yes, we chose to risk it all
For our sisters′ silent voices
Let the patriarchy fall

The young are at the gates
The young are at the gates
Come and get us if you dare
The young are at the gates

The young are at the gates
And we'll be at the gates
Until you open up your eyes
Until the world will realize
The old way always dies
The young are at the gates