Written by: John Mellencamp

Drivin' down on a dry summer's day
Old Route 66 and I was just a kid
Met a pretty little Indian girl

Along the way
Got her into my car
And tried to give her a kiss
I'll give you beads and wampum
Whatever it takes girl, to make you trade
She jumped into the back seat
And she kind of flipped her lid
She said you're tryin' to get something for nothing
Like the pilgrims in the olden days

We rode for a while till the sun went away
And I realized it was sort of an honor
Bein' around this girl
I felt embarrassed
Of what I tried to do earlier that day
She was the saddest girl I ever knew
She told me stories about the Indian nations
And how the white man stole their lives away
And although she kinda liked me
She could never trust me
And when the sun comes up
We'd go our different ways

Chorus
Now everybody has got the choice
Between hotdogs and hamburgers
Every one of us has got to choose
Between right and wrong
And givin' up or holdin' on

So I dropped her off at some railroad crossing in Texas
An old Indian man was waiting there
He smiled and thanked me
But he saw right through me
I could tell he didn't like me
For my kind he did not care
Because to him I was the white man
The one who sold him something that he already owned
And it was like he'd been riding in the car right there with us
And I felt ashamed of my actions
And the way the west was really won
So I drove down the highway
Till I came to Los Angeles
The town of the angels
The best this country can do
I got down on my knees
And I asked for forgiveness
I said, Lord, forgive us for we know not what we do

Chorus