'Playing the anthem before our football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer games has become a lazy excuse for patriotism,' writes nrarmour for usatodaysports
CLOSE SportsPulse: Playing the anthem before our football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer games has become a lazy excuse for patriotism. Time to save it for special occasions. USA TODAY
The national anthem can be a powerful unifier in times of crisis, as it was during World War I, when it became a staple before baseball games. Whitney Houston’s performance of "The Star-Spangled Banner" at the 1991 Super Bowl, during the height of the first Gulf War, still gives me chills. Yet in the two years since Colin Kaepernick and other athletes began protesting during the anthem to draw attention to the racism and economic disparity endemic to our society, it’s become something of a patriotic litmus test. The kind of faux display of national pride better suited for countries run by dictators or despots.
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