"Abbott Elementary" star Sheryl Lee Ralph lauds NFL’s ‘major effort’ at inclusive Super Bowl
The NFL has made attempts at inclusivity, and at Super Bowl 57, the league will do so once again. Before the game, there will be a performance of the Black national anthem, "Lift Every Voice and Sing," by Emmy award-winning actress Sheryl Lee Ralph.
The "Abbott Elementary" star recently credited the league for the hymn's inclusion at the Super Bowl:
"About the Black anthem at the Super Bowl: To me, that shows a major effort by the NFL to be truly inclusive. Super Bowl Sunday, 200 million people coming together to sit and experience it. What a time and what a way to bring us all together."
"Lift Every Voice and Sing" was written in 1900 as a poem by National Association for the Advancement of Colored People leader James Weldon Johnson. In 1919, the NAACP labeled the song the Black national anthem. The choice came over a decade before the “The Star-Spangled Banner” was named the national anthem of the United States.
Having the hymn sung ahead of the NFL's biggest game speaks volumes as the hymn has taken on a whole new meaning. This will be the second consecutive Super Bowl where the hymn will be sung. Five-time Grammy winning duo Mary Mary did so ahead of Super Bowl 56.
Why the NFL having "Lift Every Voice and Sing" included matters
The hymn has taken on new meaning since it was written over a century ago. It has been used as a form of protest, most recently with the death of George Floyd in May 2020. Many NFL players used their platform to speak out against Floyd's death. Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow took to Twitter with a message following Floyd's death:
The black community needs our help. They have been unheard for far too long. Open your ears, listen, and speak. This isn’t politics. This is human rights.
Former quarterback Colin Kaepernick protested the injustices of Black people in America when he started kneeling in 2016. While the hymn is called the Black national anthem, it is a hymn for everyone as millions of people across the world will be watching Super Bowl 57 in Glendale, Arizona.
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Also read: Top 5 Black QBs to play in the Super Bowl - ft. Patrick Mahomes, Russell Wilson and more