As the snow flies   On a cold and gray Chicago mornin'   A poor little baby child is born   In the ghetto   And his mama cries   'Cause if there's one thing that she don't need   It's another hungry mouth to feed   In the ghetto      So people, don't you understand   The child needs a helping hand   Or he'll grow to be an angry young man some day   Take a look at you and me,   Are we too blind to see,   Do we simply turn our heads   And look the other way      Well the world turns   And a poor little boy with a runny nose   Plays in the street as the cold wind blows   In the ghetto      And his hunger burns   So he starts to roam the streets at night   And he learns how to steal   And he learns how to fight   In the ghetto      Then one night in desperation   A young man breaks away   He buys a gun, steals a car,   Tries to run, but he doesn't get far   And his mama cries      As a crowd gathers 'round an angry young man   Face down on the street with a gun in his hand   In the ghetto      As her young man dies,   On a cold and gray Chicago mornin',   Another little baby child is born   In the ghetto