Erasing America (One Word At A Time)

Student leaders at a California high school have decided to ban “The Star Spangled Banner” from future pep rallies (and one would presume, then, likely all sports gatherings), because they feel our National Anthem is “outdated and racially insensitive.”  Regrettably, at least one adult advisor has agreed.  This would seem to be in line with the leftist thinking that our Constitution, too, is “outdated,” as, in the millennial mind of some, is virtually anything that occurred prior to 1995.  Conveniently ignoring the fact that our National Anthem is a lasting tribute to the founding of our great country, and the military sacrifice and courage it took to make, and keep it so.

As for “racially insensitive,” that appears to derive from the fact that the word “slave” appears in the THIRD verse of our Anthem.  For starters, how many of us actually realized that our nation’s preeminent song had a third verse, let alone a second, other than a presumed handful of historians!  Not surprising, since no one, repeat, no one EVER sings the third verse, or even begins to know its words.

Inclusiveness is fine.  But choosing to eliminate the use of our sacred National Anthem, because of one word buried deep in a verse that few beyond scholars even knew existed, is taking the move for inclusiveness to a ridiculous extreme.  One wonders if this really is about an obscure third verse reference, or rather is part of the seemingly relentless effort by some to further diminish, and remove, other key elements of American history and traditions.   (Reference:  Fox News On-Line, 2-14-2018)