The NFL kicked off the Super Bowl with a performance of a song that has been dubbed the ‘black national anthem,’ before featuring the actual U.S. anthem, causing anger among detractors who charged that the decision was divisive.
The song, ‘Lift Every Voice and Sing,’ performed by Sheryl Lee Ralph, was adopted by the NAACP in 1917, and has since been known as a ‘black national anthem’.
The NFL has been playing the song before games since 2020 after the BLM riots in the wake of the George Floyd incident.
This is the third consecutive time it has been played at the Super Bowl, but the first time it has been performed live.
Many criticised the move, pointing out that having two anthems sends a message that Americans are separated by race.
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