Inside CECOT

Verse 1 They thought they’d cross a border line, Seeking safety, seeking time, Venezuelan hearts in flight, Believed in justice, not the night. Handcuffed in dawn’s confused embrace, Told they’d find a safer place, But concrete walls and iron doors, Held nameless souls upon those floors. Pre-Chorus No trials, no voices in the air— Just shadows of the ones still there. Chorus Inside CECOT, they beat the hope down low, Inside CECOT where no one wants to go, They said they came from danger back home, But danger found them where they roamed. Inside CECOT, no light to guide the way, Inside CECOT, where night outlasts the day. Verse 2 They said, “Welcome to a place you’ll never see the sun,” Brace again and again, they say it’s just begun, Forced to kneel in silence, pain without a name, Days drip slow and heavy—they all look the same. Beaten ‘til the blood runs, walls whisper back your cries, Fear that eats your memory, hope you can’t disguise. Pre-Chorus There’s nothing left but aching bones, A story told in trembling tones. Chorus Inside CECOT, they beat the hope down low, Inside CECOT where no one wants to go, They said they came from danger back home, But danger found them where they roamed. Inside CECOT, no light to guide the way, Inside CECOT, where night outlasts the day. Bridge This isn’t rumor or garden fairy tale, This is flesh and blood beyond the bail, From crossing borders with a dream so grand, To living in a bunker of barren land. Tell me when the world will hear this plea— A call for mercy, a call to see. Final Chorus Inside CECOT, where they lost their names, Inside CECOT, caught in heartbreak’s flames, We sing it loud so it won’t fade away— No human life should be left in grey. Inside CECOT, we raise the light again, Inside CECOT, for every woman and man