I don't think the meaning of this song could be any more clear to anyone with even a small understanding of American history and society. It's about racism and the unjust way African-Americans were treated in the Southern U.S. for many years going back to slavery, and are still today. Yes, it's true that not everyone in the South is racist and there are plenty of racist people elsewhere, but it's undeniable that the majority of prejudice, oppression and segregation towards African-Americans took place in the Southern U.S. from Reconstruction through the 20th Century. The song bears many references to this fact. The references to cotton, mansions, shacks and bullwhips all, of course, refer to slavery. "Now your crosses are burning fast" is a reference to the Ku Klux Klan, a group of radical southern white supremacists who dressed up in white cloaks and went on "night rides" to hunt, lynch and oppress African-Americans and other minorities. One of the hallmarks and symbols of the KKK was to set crosses on fire during these "night rides." The line "Don't forget what your good book says" calls the mostly-Christian South out on their hypocrisy based on the supposedly loving, peaceful nature of their religion. The final verse, "Lily Belle, your hair is golden brown. I've seen your black man comin' 'round. Swear by God I'm gonna cut him down!" is sung from the perspective of one of these ignorant southerners who, on discovering a white woman's affair with a black man, vows to kill him. Sadly enough, this is what actually happened in such a situation for a very long time, and probably still happens in some areas of the South.
I don't think the meaning of this song could be any more clear to anyone with even a small understanding of American history and society. It's about racism and the unjust way African-Americans were treated in the Southern U.S. for many years going back to slavery, and are still today. Yes, it's true that not everyone in the South is racist and there are plenty of racist people elsewhere, but it's undeniable that the majority of prejudice, oppression and segregation towards African-Americans took place in the Southern U.S. from Reconstruction through the 20th Century. The song bears many references to this fact. The references to cotton, mansions, shacks and bullwhips all, of course, refer to slavery. "Now your crosses are burning fast" is a reference to the Ku Klux Klan, a group of radical southern white supremacists who dressed up in white cloaks and went on "night rides" to hunt, lynch and oppress African-Americans and other minorities. One of the hallmarks and symbols of the KKK was to set crosses on fire during these "night rides." The line "Don't forget what your good book says" calls the mostly-Christian South out on their hypocrisy based on the supposedly loving, peaceful nature of their religion. The final verse, "Lily Belle, your hair is golden brown. I've seen your black man comin' 'round. Swear by God I'm gonna cut him down!" is sung from the perspective of one of these ignorant southerners who, on discovering a white woman's affair with a black man, vows to kill him. Sadly enough, this is what actually happened in such a situation for a very long time, and probably still happens in some areas of the South.