Changing-up the National Anthem

(h/t: Drudge) Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper received an unwanted gift during his “State of the City” address yesterday. This gift came from Mrs. Rene Marie, the performer asked to sing the National Anthem for the event. It seems that Mrs Marie decided to change things up a bit and rather than sing the Star Spangled Banner, as requested, she sang Lift Ev’ry Voice & Sing, instead. Her selection, recorded in the Congressional Record as the official “African American National Hymn,” stirred up quite a bit of controversy. Why? Because she did this on her own initiative and didn’t inform anyone of her intent.

Colorado Governor, Bill Ritter, felt Mrs. Marie acted inappropriately and her actions were both “Wrong” and “out of bounds.” Furthermore, he felt that that her action didn’t qualify as “fair artistic expression” and was “operating as a distraction.” City Councilman, Charlie Brown, was critical as well:

“There is no substitute for the national anthem, period. And that’s what really bothered me. You know when we fly the flag, the American flag, it’s always the highest flag, as it should be. And that didn’t come across today, that didn’t happen today.”

Mayor Hickenlooper said he didn’t think Mrs. Marie was trying to offend anyone or make a political statement.

(Bull!)

So why did she do it? According to Mrs Marie:

“When I decided to sing my version, what was going on in my head was: ‘I want to express how I feel about living in the United States, as a black woman, as a black person.’” (emphasis mine)

“I, I, I, my, my”: it doesn’t get any more self-serving than that! Not only is it self-serving, its divisive! The Mayor’s “State of the City” address wasn’t just for the black residents of Denver, it was for everyone. Just as the Star Spangled Banner represents everyone living in the United States! Mrs. Marie’s deceitful act only served to alienate herself and other black Americans, turning an otherwise patriotic song into one of protest!

Does she care? When asked if given the opportunity to do it over, would she sing the same song? “Yes”. Would she apologize? “No”.

Sounds an awful lot like someone trying to make a political statement, doesn’t it?

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