La Carta

The Letter

La Carta

I received a letterMe mandaron una carta
By the early mailPor el correo temprano
And in that letter they tell meY en esa carta me dicen
That my brother was arrestedQue cayó preso mi hermano
And without mercy in chainsY sin lástima con grillos
They dragged him through the streets, yesPor las calles lo arrastraron, sí

The letter states the reasonLa carta dice el motivo
That Roberto has committedQue ha cometido Roberto
Having supported the strikeHaber apoyado el paro
That had already been resolvedQue ya se había resuelto
If this is a reasonSi acaso esto es un motivo
I am also a prisoner, sergeant, yesPresa también voy sargento, sí

I, who am so far awayYo que me encuentro tan lejos
Waiting for newsEsperando una noticia
The letter comes to tell meMe viene decir la carta
That in my homeland there is no justiceQue en mi patria no hay justicia
The hungry ask for breadLos hambrientos piden pan
The militia gives them lead, yesPlomo les da la milicia, sí

In this pompous wayDe esta manera pomposa
They want to keep their seatQuieren conservar su asiento
Those with fans and tailsLos de abanicos y de frac
Without deserving itSin tener merecimiento
They come and go from the churchVan y vienen de la iglesia
And forget the commandments, yesY olvidan los mandamientos, sí

Have you seen such insolenceHabrase visto insolencia
Barbarism and treacheryBarbarie y alevosía
To present the musketDe presentar el trabuco
And kill in cold bloodY matar a sangre fría
Those who have no defenseA quien defensa no tiene
With both hands empty, yesCon las dos manos vacía, sí

The letter I have receivedLa carta que he recebido
Asks for a responseMe pide contestación
I ask that it be spreadYo pido que se propale
Throughout the populationPor toda la población
That the lion is a bloodthirsty oneQue el león es un sanguinario
In every generation, yesEn toda generación, sí

Luckily I have a guitarPor suerte tengo guitarra
To cry out my painPara llorar mi dolor
I also have nine brothersTambién tengo nueve hermanos
Apart from the one who was chainedFuera del que se engrilló
The nine are communistsLos nueve son comunistas
With the favor of my God, yesCon el favor de mi Dios, sí