Bonnie Parker

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Naar aanleiding van een redactioneel stuk dat ik las, over het stel dat het oosten van Nederland en een deel van Duitsland de afgelopen dagen in haar greep had, na berovingen, gijzelingen en geweldplegingen, vandaag dit stuk. Want wat las ik? In de meeste kranten en media werden de twee uit Nederland vergeleken met Bonnie & Clyde. Bonnie Parker en Clyde Barrow werden in de jaren dertig van de vorige eeuw als bankrovers en outlaws bekend, opgejaagd door de politie kwamen ze om het leven in een hinderlaag van de politie op 23 mei 1934, volgens de kranten van toen door “een regen van duizend geweerschoten”. Bonnie & Clyde werden verdacht van  14 moorden en diverse roven en inbraken.

Bonnie & Clyde werden vooral bekend na de verfilming van hun leven in 1967 met in de hoofdrollen Faye Dunnaway en Warren Beatty.

Terug naar de reden van deze post. In dat zelfde redactionele stuk las ik dat Bonnie Parker gedichten schreef. En dat ze een gedicht had geschreven over hoe zij en Clyde tenslotte aan hun einde zouden komen, door geweerschoten van de politie. Dat gedicht heb ik uiteraard opgezocht en hieronder kun je lezen hoe het allemaal is gekomen volgens Bonnie Parker.

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The trail’s end

You’ve read the story of Jesse James

of how he lived and died.

If you’re still in need;

of something to read,

here’s the story of Bonnie and Clyde.

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Now Bonnie and Clyde are the Barrow gang

I’m sure you all have read.

how they rob and steal;

and those who squeal,

are usually found dying or dead.

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There’s lots of untruths to these write-ups;

they’re not as ruthless as that.

their nature is raw;

they hate all the law,

the stool pigeons, spotters and rats.

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They call them cold-blooded killers

they say they are heartless and mean.

But I say this with pride

that I once knew Clyde,

when he was honest and upright and clean.

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But the law fooled around;

kept taking him down,

and locking him up in a cell.

Till he said to me;

“I’ll never be free,

so I’ll meet a few of them in hell”

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The road was so dimly lighted

there were no highway signs to guide.

But they made up their minds;

if all roads were blind,

they wouldn’t give up till they died.

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The road gets dimmer and dimmer

sometimes you can hardly see.

But it’s fight man to man

and do all you can,

for they know they can never be free.

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From heart-break some people have suffered

from weariness some people have died.

But take it all in all;

our troubles are small,

till we get like Bonnie and Clyde.

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If a policeman is killed in Dallas

and they have no clue or guide.

If they can’t find a fiend,

they just wipe their slate clean

and hang it on Bonnie and Clyde.

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There’s two crimes committed in America

not accredited to the Barrow mob.

They had no hand;

in the kidnap demand,

nor the Kansas City Depot job.

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A newsboy once said to his buddy;

“I wish old Clyde would get jumped.

In these awfull hard times;

we’d make a few dimes,

if five or six cops would get bumped”

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The police haven’t got the report yet

but Clyde called me up today.

He said,”Don’t start any fights;

we aren’t working nights,

we’re joining the NRA.”

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From Irving to West Dallas viaduct

is known as the Great Divide.

Where the women are kin;

and the men are men,

and they won’t “stool” on Bonnie and Clyde.

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If they try to act like citizens

and rent them a nice little flat.

About the third night;

they’re invited to fight,

by a sub-gun’s rat-tat-tat.

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They don’t think they’re too smart or desperate

they know that the law always wins.

They’ve been shot at before;

but they do not ignore,

that death is the wages of sin.

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Some day they’ll go down together

they’ll bury them side by side.

To few it’ll be grief,

to the law a relief

but it’s death for Bonnie and Clyde.

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Hieronder een ander gedicht van Bonnie in haar handschrift.

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