I know it’s Tuesday, not Monday. As I explained in yesterday’s post, the story I was trying to tell for a Sunday post I didn’t finish until Monday. I wanted to post that story before this one, so that was Monday’s priority (if you missed it, you can read that here: https://blissfullu.com/2026/01/12/fight-back-with-fierce-joy/).

So, yes, I acknowledge this is Tuesday. But the Motivational Music Monday series is a regular thing on my blog, so I’m publishing this under that title. HOWEVER, I am NOT trying to convince you that today is Monday! That is totally opposite to what this post is about.

As I stated in yesterday’s blog post (link above) and my post on January 5 (see https://blissfullu.com/2026/01/07/remembering-the-truth-of-january-6-through-software-storytelling-and-soup/), like Heather Cox Richardson sees these times through the eyes of a historian, I see them through the eyes of a literature teacher. Richardson sees us reliving the times of the just-before-the Civil War day, or the Gilded Age, or the giddy years before the Great Depression.

But I see us living through days TRYING to replicate George Orwell’s dystopian novel about an authoritarian takeover, Animal Farm.

As I said in my post yesterday, I absolutely believe in actively engaging in political protests and pushbacks about illegal and immoral acts by some in our government. However, I also believe in the arts as a wonderful way to show people the truth and the way forward.

So today I’ve got a couple of songs that call out the Animal Farm nature of these days. One of them has only been posted on Instagram (as far as I can tell), so I haven’t actually heard it. However, thanks to Rolling Stone France (the US Rolling Stone site wouldn’t let me read it without a subscription), I can share the lyrics with you.

The song is by Zach Schmidt and is entitled “T.T.T.T.M.I.D.S.W.I.S.” (They Tried to Tell Me I Didn’t See What I Saw). The lyrics are:

They tried to tell me that I didn’t see what I just saw
The murder of a mother by the short arm of the law
They shot her in the street in front of us all
They tried to tell me that I didn’t see what I just saw

But I watched it on the TV and I watched it on my phone
I watched it in the darkness, even when my eyes were closed
Cruelty took kindness and kicked her out the door
I once loved Madame freedom, but I don’t know her anymore

They tried to tell me that I didn’t see what I just saw
The murder of a mother by the short arm of the law
They shot her in the street in front of us all
They tried to tell me that I didn’t see what I just saw

They took away my neighbor, they took away yours too
They’ll try to spin the story before the day is through
And blame it on somebody else because that’s their golden rule
But blame is a game and it’s a shame how they’ve been treating you

They tried to tell me that I didn’t see what I just saw
The murder of a mother by the short arm of the law
They shot her in the street in front of us all
They tried to tell me that I didn’t see what I just saw

As I said in my post yesterday, I disagree with using the word “murder” until we go through our legal justice process. A foundational belief is that people are considered innocent until proven guilty. Of couse, the current administration is ignoring that principle. But for those of us who are fighting for the rule of law, I think we should acknowledge that applies to ICE agents as much as it applies to immigrants. But other than that, I totally agree with his sentiments. The Trump Administration’s spin is absolutely that she was the aggressor, which is not what I see in the videos at all.

I don’t know if this works or not, but I hope this is a link for those of you on Instagram to be able to hear the song: https://www.instagram.com/p/DTTVzyYDh8Z/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=embed_video_watch_again. But I know you can find out more about Zack Schmidt’s music at: zachschmidt.bandcamp.com

But here is an actual song on YouTube that I can include. This is Jesse Welle’s song, “Good vs. ICE.”

Two things I really like about this song is:

1. Again, as a literature teacher, it seems remarkable that the first protestor to be killed, at least to national recognition, is named Renee Nicole Good. The name Renee means “reborn.” The name Nicole means “people of victory.” And, of course, Good means “good.” As a literature teacher, I tell students to pay attention to names in books, because they often are highly significant. Can you believe that this ICE agent killed a person with a name of such meaning? I literally could not have invented a better name to rally people around an unnecessary death that motivates people to stand up to the activities of ICE. So I love that title–“Good vs. ICE.”
   
2. I also love the first lines about the singer having worse encounters in gas stations and parking lots. I feel the same way. Before moving to North Carolina to live with my then boyfriend/now husband, for close to 20 years I lived in Dupont Circle, which is the one of the first neighborhoods above the official/commercial areas of Washington DC. I didn’t have a car, and mostly navigated the city through walking and public transportation. I can’t remember how often it happened, but several times I was crossing the street according to the street lights and cars continued to drive towards me at about the speed that Renee Good was driving. But urban dwellers know how to deal with this. I would dodge out of the way but hit the hood of the car sharply to get the driver’s attention (this happened a lot when people were turning right on a red light but were focused on something other than where they were going). The universal reaction from the drivers was stomping on the brakes, raising at least one or both hands, and a guilty expression on the face meant to convey “SORRY.” I can’t imagine that wouldn’t have been Renee Good’s reaction if the ICE agent had done that if he actually felt threatened. I wish he had tried the WACK instead of immediately going for his gun. And I chose to believe he probably feels the same way today, although his lawyers will tell him not to admit it. Because I believe that Justice will ultimately the official story of this unfortunate encounter.

So these songs are perhaps not as uplifting as my usual Motivational Music Mondays. But after all, it is Tuesday. I find it motivational to have musicians remind us to not let the government tell us our memories and perceptions are wrong. Sticking to our truths, not to government propaganda, is one of the hallmarks of Defending Democracy.