OPINION | This article contains the author's opinion.
The “woke” NFL is accused of pushing race politics on Americans by featuring a “Black National Anthem” ahead of Super Bowl LVII.
The inclusion of the song has sparked significant controversy and backlash as critics condemn the song as “promoting segregation” and “racist.”
A photo of Republican Kari Lake went viral after she refused to stand for the song. “I’m just here for THE National Anthem,” Lake wrote to Twitter.
The @NFL played two different “National Anthems” tonight. Someone just sent me a photo of @KariLake sitting during the first one. pic.twitter.com/HVdiu5xRBG
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) February 12, 2023
I’m just here for THE National Anthem🇺🇸
— Kari Lake (@KariLake) February 13, 2023
Lake received support on social media. “Never been easier to be a hero these days,” one person said.
“Good for her,” another person wrote. “No one should support this. It was created to divide the country.”
Lake explained her decision by saying, “I’m against a ‘black National Anthem’ for the same reason I am against a ‘white National Anthem,’ a ‘gay National Anthem,’ a ‘straight National Anthem,’ a ‘Jewish National Anthem,’ a ‘Christian National Anthem,’ and so on.”
“We are ONE NATION, under God,” she continued.
“Francis Scott Key’s words ring true for every single American Citizen regardless of their skin color,” she said. “James Weldon Johnson’s ‘Lift Your Voice’ is a beautiful song, but it is not our National Anthem.”
More on this story via Fox News:
The Black national anthem, called “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” was played prior to the National Anthem ahead of the game, and sparked heated debate across social media.
According to the NAACP website, the song was written by NAACP leader James Weldon Johnson in 1900 as a poem that turned into a hymn.
It was played during the 2020 Super Bowl, and the league’s 2020 season included the song during its Week 1 games. It was also reported prior to the league’s 2021 season that the song would be played before all games…
The controversy surrounding the song has also expanded beyond the NFL. Earlier this year, one Florida elementary school upset parents by sending permission slips to parents for students to learn the song.