![]() ![]() and the British signed a peace treaty at the end of 1814, the U.S. Like so many of his compatriots, Francis Scott Key, the wealthy American lawyer who wrote “The Star Spangled Banner” in the wake of the Battle of Fort McHenry on 14 September 1814, was a slaveholder who believed blacks to be “a distinct and inferior race of people, which all experience proves to be the greatest evil that afflicts a community.” It goes without saying that Key did not have the enslaved black population of America in mind when he penned the words “land of the free.” It would be logical to assume, as well, that he might have harbored a special resentment toward African Americans who fought against the United States on behalf of the King. ".There are historians (notably Robin Blackburn, author of The Overthrow of Colonial Slavery, 1776-1848, and Alan Taylor, author of “American Blacks in the War of 1812”), who have indeed read the stanza as glorying in the Americans’ defeat of the Corps of Colonial Marines, one of two units of black slaves recruited between 18 to fight for the British on the promise of gaining their freedom. On the Snopes website, which is used to debunk or verify most controversial issues, I found the following explanation. But here is just some of what I found, and you can do your own research as well. Now I know this is shocking to almost everyone reading this, and some of you may have stopped reading because this is not what you want to hear about our National Anthem. I did some research and there are many articles on this subject, almost all of them calling it a racist verse. What exactly does Francis Scott Key mean by these words, specifically the hireling and slave? No one knows because Key is dead and cannot explain what he meant in his own words, so we have to try to interpret them based on who he was as a person. ![]() The controversy lies with the meaning of lines five and six of this verse and has become the topic of the day. #THE STAR THE STAR SPANGLED BANNER SONG FREE#O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave. No refuge could save the hireling and slaveįrom the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave,Īnd the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave Their blood has wash’d out their foul footstep’s pollution. That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusionĪ home and a Country should leave us no more? The third verse of the National Anthem goes like this:Īnd where is that band who so vauntingly swore, But this article is about the National Anthem, so let me get back on subject. ![]() These are just a few examples that you see on a regular basis. Then you have the Super Bowl champions whose logo contains a partial representation of the flag, which is yet another violation. ![]() Also, every team has a small flag displayed on the back of their helmets, which is another violation. By allowing the flag to be spread out horizontally over the field, you are in direct violation of the flag code. #THE STAR THE STAR SPANGLED BANNER SONG CODE#Over the past few days there have been a lot of posts about the flag code and how many people who claim to be patriotic, including the NFL owners, have been violating that code. Maybe the Chicago bears took the same stance because they were playing in Green Bay and wanted to get out of town safely. Although I was upset over the message being changed by Aaron Rodgers who spoke for the team, I had to consider that Green Bay is an overwhelmingly white-populated city and they were definitely concerned about upsetting their fan base. After a massive protest this past weekend by the entire league, I watched a watered down version last night where the narrative was changed from a protest against police brutality to players locking arms in solidarity of team unity. Everyday there are more debates over the protests by NFL players who choose to take a knee. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |