Mário

Little Mario, inside the nursery
Was like a letter in an envelope with no addressee
A boy with no destiny, his name on the birth certificate
He stayed in an orphanage until his sixth birthday
And ended up in a seminary
Where a priest introduced Mario to the ABCDary

He learned to read the Bible and the dictionary
And by twelve, he could write a diary
The diary was his best friend
Where Mario confessed his forbidden desire to be a librarian
And to meet a woman
And all literary genres

Mario! Do you know Mario?
Tired of being a fool
Changed professions, became a revolutionary
Go Mario, go Mario, go Mario!
Do you know Mario?
Tired of being a fool
Mario is in the area and there's no match for Mario
Go Mario, go Mario!

The boy Mario, there in the seminary
Was like a fish out of water, trapped in an aquarium
He preferred to go to the city, another worker
Fifteen years old, less than a salary
Less than what was needed
Hard life divided between reading and work

At sixteen, he was already a community leader
He was a young fighter and supportive
At seventeen, he was a boy in an office
At eighteen, he did mandatory military service

They killed a soldier and needed a scapegoat
Mario was rebellious and went for interrogation
Innocent until proven guilty
He was tortured and became a prisoner
And inside, he had time to sort out his thoughts
In an extraordinary way

Mario! Do you know Mario?
Tired of being a fool
Changed professions, became a revolutionary
Go Mario, go Mario, go Mario!
Do you know Mario?
Tired of being a fool
Mario is in the area and there's no match for Mario
Go Mario, go Mario!

They released Mario before the scheduled time
The press discovered his arbitrary trial
They spread his story and his comments
His life and his libertarian speech
Every human being has the right to be someone
And has the right to have the best of the best

Better for all of us
If every human being has the right to their turn
And has the right to their voice
Priests and beggars, nuns, prostitutes, all are equal
Everyone has the right to peace, everyone has the right to fight
The right and duty to know and see and make it happen

Everyone has the right to change!
Not everyone who dreamed succeeded
But for everyone to succeed
Everyone must have the chance to try
There's no one else!
But there has to be for everyone and for me too!

Missionary without religion (without religion!)
Conquered a legion, a multitude
In his mission against omission in all scenarios
Urban, suburban, and agrarian
But his egalitarian speech
Was becoming increasingly harsh, mature, incendiary!

Bothering the powerful and reactionary
(This son of a) who already wanted to see his name in the obituary
But Mario was in all the news
In schools, on university campuses
In the slums, in the alleys, in the stalls, in the streets
In the factories, everywhere!

And Mario refutes any argument contrary to his ideology
Debates with any politician, authority, or authoritarian
From the executive, legislative, or judiciary
Landowner or mega-entrepreneur
Any mercenary from the International Monetary Fund
No one in this world is a match for Mario!

And Mario, who was just a Nobody
Read, wrote, met, and was recognized
Tired of being a fool
And for those who are tired too
Mario is an example to be followed