The lyrics, written by Bob Dylan and Jacques Levy, are a form of protest against the jail term handed down to boxer Hurricane Carter. This song was mainly aimed at the government and the state of New Jerseys’ court system. This was also aimed at the way ‘black’ people were often accused of crime back then. This was evident in some parts of the song, such as;

While Arthur Dexter Bradley's still in the robbery game

And the cops are puttin' the screws to him, lookin' for somebody to blame.

"Remember that murder that happened in a bar?"

"Remember you said you saw the getaway car?"

"You think you'd like to play ball with the law?"

"Think it might-a been that fighter that you saw runnin' that night?"

The judge made Rubin's witnesses drunkards from the slums

To the white folks who watched he was a revolutionary bum

And to the black folks he was just a crazy nigger.

Some topics in this essay:
Bello Bradley, Dexter Bradley's, Sixteenth Round, Bob Dylan, Hurricane Carter, Wrongfully Convicted, Jacques Levy, Rubin Carter, , bob dylan, dylan talks, verse dylan, meaning song, cards marked, bello bradley, verse dylan talks, rubin's cards marked, rubin's cards,