Anti-Beyonce forces to protest outside NFL offices Tuesday
America may not be as divided a country as it seems if you only read social media trolls, but there is one place the division is strong.
Where you stand on Beyonce's Super Bowl halftime show?
For many it was merely eye-popping musical entertainment. For others it was a celebration of cultural heritage and a call to right the wrongs of the past. For "Saturday Night Live" it was just plain scary for white people. And for others it was a shameful un-American display that glorified the violence of the Black Panthers over the police.
That last group will be meeting outside the NFL's New York headquarters Tuesday to protest.
"Join us as we demonstrate on the block of the NFL Headquarters building," the unnamed organizer wrote on Eventbrite. "Are you offended as an American that Beyoncé pulled her race-baiting stunt at the Superbowl? Do you agree that it was a slap in the face to law enforcement? Do you agree that the Black Panthers was/is a hate group which should not be glorified? Come and let's stand together. Let's tell the NFL we don't want hate speech & racism at the Superbowl ever again!"
Now, the Black Panthers haven't been a viable part of American politics for more than 30 years, but they certainly were a polarizing group during their nearly two decades on the scene.
Is the Super Bowl the right place for their message of black empowerment? We can only assume that the NFL, which guards against players wearing the wrong color shoelaces, knew what Beyonce was going to do and signed off on it. No league is more protective of its image.
And while the Panthers' calls for violence and Marxism aren't proper topics for halftime of a football game, their message of black empowerment may be. Keep in mind that the NFL has no black owners and only four black head coaches, but the players ... they're two-thirds black.