Lyrics Page
In The Ghetto
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Aug 8, 2026 updated
Verified editorial review
Merle Haggard's 'In the Ghetto' is a poignant narrative about the cycle of poverty and neglect in urban America. The song follows a baby born into hardship, growing into a hungry child who turns to crime, and ultimately dies violently, only for another baby to be born into the same circumstances. It challenges listeners to recognize their responsibility to help those in need, rather than turning away. While not explicitly a worship song, it carries a moral and compassionate message that resonates with Christian themes of caring for the marginalized and the consequences of societal indifference.
Lyrics Verified by Editorial Team
As the snow flies on a cold and gray Chicago morn
A poor little baby child is born in the Ghetto and his mama cries
Cause there's one thing that she don't need
Is another little hungry mouth to feed in the Ghetto.
People don't you understand the child needs a helping hand
He'll grow to be an angry young man someday
Take a look at you and me are we too blind to see
Do we simply turn our heads and look the other way
As the world turns.
A hungry little boy with a running nose
Plays in the streets as the cold wind blows in the Ghetto
And his hunger burns
So he starts to roam the streets at night
And he learns how to steal and he learns how to fight in the Ghetto.
Then one night in desperation the young man breaks away
And he buys a gun and he steals a car and he tries to run
But don't get far and his mama cries.
As a crowd gathers round and the angry young man
Paces down the street with a gun in his hand in the Ghetto
As the young man dies.
On a cold and gray Chicago morn
Another little baby child is born in the Ghetto
And his mama cries
(In Ghetto, oh, oh...)