Daarom Zijn Wij Vrij Lyrics in English Stef Bos

Below, I translated the lyrics of the song Daarom Zijn Wij Vrij by Stef Bos from Dutch to English.
These lyrics have verified word for word translations. Click any lyric word to see the translation and hear the pronunciation!
Because once there was a man
Who wanted to build a castle in the air
In a time when dreaming was forbidden
And yet flew beyond the clouds
And because there once was a woman
Who saw the world around her
In a time of war and madness
And couldn't close her eyes
To violence and oppression
That's why we are free
Free to move
Free to choose for ourselves
What we want to live for
Free to leave
Free to stay here
Free to say whatever
Or to write it down
Because of people like them
That's why we are free
And because there once was a time
In which a child, because of name and color and race
Was no longer sure of their life
And because there were people
Who, at risk of their own lives
Didn't stay silent then
That's why we're free
Free to move
Free to choose for ourselves
What we want to live for
Free to leave
Free to stay here
Free to say whatever
Or to write it down
Because of people like them
That's why we are free
Carl van Ossietsky
Jan Campert
Victor Jara
Steve Biko
Joop Westerweel
Ken Saro Wiwa
The soldiers on the beach
Of Juno, Gold and Utah
Because of people like them
That's why we are free
Free to move
Free to choose for ourselves
What we want to live for
Free to leave
Free to stay here
Free to say whatever
Or to write it down
Free to drift away
To castles in the air
Where the freedom of one
Doesn't oppress the other
Free to believe
And free to trust
That one day on the ruins
You can build a new city again
Because of people like them
That's why we are free
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SONG MEANING

Daarom Zijn Wij Vrij (That Is Why We Are Free) is Stef Bos’s rousing salute to the men, women, and even children who dared to dream bigger than their circumstances. From a man who built luchtkastelen (castles in the sky) when dreaming was forbidden, to a woman who kept her eyes open amid war and madness, the song traces a line of courage through history. Bos sprinkles real-life heroes into the lyrics—Carl von Ossietsky, Victor Jara, Steve Biko, and the soldiers who landed on Juno, Gold, and Utah beaches—showing how individual acts of bravery have slowly stitched together the freedom we enjoy today.

The chorus turns that history lesson into a personal checklist of liberties: free to move, free to choose what we live for, free to speak and write, free to believe and to build anew. By repeating “Daarom zijn wij vrij,” Bos reminds us that our everyday choices rest on the sacrifices of those who refused to stay silent. The song is both a celebration and a gentle challenge—use your freedom well, because it was hard-won by people just like you.

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