Super Bowl’s pre-game ceremony has become a ‘culture war issue’ and Donald Trump has only made it worse

Super Bowl is that one day of the year when Americans put aside their differences and collectively yell at athletes running around in tights. It’s supposed to be the great unifier. But nope, not this year, as Donald Trump decided to crash the party uninvited.

Trump’s presence at the Super Bowl — the first sitting president ever to attend — has made sure we’re all fully aware that even this sacred American ritual isn’t safe from the endless political noise. For over a century, “Lift Every Voice and Sing” has held deep historical significance, originally written as a poem in 1899 by James Weldon Johnson and later adopted by the NAACP as the “Black National Anthem.”

This year marks the fifth consecutive Super Bowl where the song is part of the pregame ceremony. And every year, without fail, it sparks a fresh round of conservative outrage, as though they just discovered it exists. You’d think by now they’d at least have a stockpile of new arguments, but no — same tired talking points, same manufactured outrage. In 2023, Rep. Lauren Boebert took to social media to remind us all that there’s “ONE NATIONAL ANTHEM.”

Her BFF, Matt Gaetz had chimed in too, declaring that he and his wife were boycotting the Super Bowl because the song “desecrates” the actual National Anthem.

Last year, Trump loyalist Kari Lake went viral for refusing to stand during the song’s performance at Super Bowl LVII. She later declared on social media that she was “just here for THE National Anthem.” Well, if you asked Lake to recite the third verse of The Star-Spangled Banner, she’d probably think it was a trick question.

This isn’t about the anthem. It’s not even about football. It’s about the right wing’s growing discomfort with anything that even remotely acknowledges systemic racism or celebrates diversity. But in the eyes of some conservatives, it’s a direct attack on their version of America, where unity can only exist if everyone ignores history and pretends everything has always been fine. Calling “Lift Every Voice and Sing” divisive or “racist” (yes, some have gone that far) is peak shamelessness. As highlighted by award-winning American essayist and American culture critic, Gerald Early, it is a “song of Black affirmation, perseverance and inspiration” that has been disappointingly transformed into a “culture war issue.”

It’s a song of hope. If that’s threatening to you, maybe the problem isn’t the song. Maybe the problem is your fragile worldview.

As if the debate over the anthem wasn’t already ridiculous enough Divider-in-Chief had to be present in the NFL event. It’s obvious he didn’t show up because he’s a football fan. Trump showed up to make a statement, to insert himself into the culture war, and to ensure that his face is front and center in the latest national spectacle. What exactly is he trying to prove? That he’s standing in solidarity with those who think acknowledging Black history is divisive? Maybe he just wanted to distract everyone from the fact that he hasn’t delivered on half his promises, like, say, lowering the cost of eggs. Whatever his intentions, his presence certainly didn’t help.

This controversy is part of a larger backlash against DEI efforts across various sectors of American life. Trump’s return to the White House has been marked by a flurry of executive orders aimed at dismantling DEI policies, and many conservatives are cheering him on. They claim these programs are unnecessary or divisive, but in reality, they’re just uncomfortable with change.

The NFL, for its part, has been trying to balance its commitment to social justice with the demands of its predominantly conservative fan base. Since 2020, the league has incorporated messages like “End Racism” in its end zones and launched various initiatives to promote inclusion. This year, touchdowns at the Caesars Superdome will be scored in front of the message, “Choose Love.” It’s a nice sentiment, though one has to wonder how effective it really is when so many people are actively choosing outrage instead.