Margaret Bergmann Lambert 1914-2017
She was a Jew who could jump
She would have won the gold at Berlin
But the twentieth century’s Donald Trump
Laid a trap and lured her in
A movement arose to boycott the games
Unless Germany showed it was unbiased
A fake competition – Bergmann came
And of course she jumped the highest
Shortly before the torch was ignited
For the Aryan Nation Olympics
The Nazis wrote and said “You’re disinvited!
Can’t believe you fell for that gimmick!”
OK, alright they weren’t that honest
About the whole thing being a charade
“You performed poorly”, she was admonished
But come on, a Jew in the German parade?
But they felt bad and they did admit it
And thought that it would be enough
To offer Bergmann a standing-room ticket
(I’m not making this up).
She passed
In 1937 – emigration
Ten dollars she was allowed
Saved her parents from cremation
“Never going back” she vowed
Then in the city of Laupheim
Where she use to train
She put aside a country’s crime
For a stadium in her name
She never forgot what might have been
What would have been her glory
But was grateful in the end
That her life became a story
She was a Jew who could jump
She set the bar so high
From that view, no one could trump
The beauty of the sky