[Verse 1] They put a number on a face A headline takes its place A life reduced to figures So nobody has to care They draw a line around a name Then tell us who's to blame A photograph becomes a warning Before we know the truth [Pre-Chorus] Paper people Paper lives Fold them up And sleep at night [Chorus] We're not numbers on a page We're not figures in a frame You can print another headline But you can't erase a name Paper people, paper lives We're more than what they write [Verse 2] A thousand voices disappear Behind a sentence made of fear Someone's mother, someone's brother Somebody waiting to come home [Bridge] Read the story Turn the page Look beyond the photograph There's a person underneath it There's a life you can't reduce [Instrumental] [Final Chorus] We're not numbers on a page We're not figures in a frame You can print another headline But you can't erase a name Paper people, paper lives We're more than what they write
