NFL Anthem Debate Escalates From Musical Enjoyment to Racist Accusations

The Monday Night Football clash between the Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles kicked off with a national anthem sung by a mariachi band. Nearly twenty-four hours later, the conversation has shifted from a calm assessment of musical quality to a heated debate about The Mariachi Herencia de México's decision to aim for a big finish that many fans did not anticipate but largely enjoyed. That initial reaction was far too tame for social media, where the discourse quickly turned emotional and at times vitriolic. One performer faced accusations of racism while others claimed the NFL was engaging in offensive outsourcing of America's game to foreigners. A United States senator even entered the fray. This is certainly not tame territory. If you cannot handle such a heated exchange, stop reading now because the following paragraphs will get into it. For those who are curious and engaged, we must first address the performance itself. To an ear untrained in music's finer points, the opening sounded like any other national anthem since the three-horn section of the ensemble led the way. Mariachi bands do not play salsa music so there was no drum or bongo section setting the rhythm. The situation grew complicated when the group, dressed in full traditional mariachi garb including wide-brimmed sombreros, seemingly tried for a big finish that did not sound like the traditional Star Spangled Banner at all. Critics hit the online streets quickly with reactions ranging from "Mexicans have their own country and national anthem" to claims that the performers were wearing regalia dedicated to Mexico. Another user simply asked why a garbage mariachi band was playing the national anthem. To be accurate, The Mariachi Herencia de Mexico is actually a two-time Grammy-nominated group out of Chicago brought in as part of the Bears' and NFL's celebration of Hispanic and Latin Heritage Month. The reaction came from both sides of the political spectrum with some on the right questioning why the anthem was used to celebrate that specific month even though Hispanics are the USA's largest minority group. Some on the left basked in the fact that people on the right might be triggered while others from both sides praised the performance. That praise was not enough for one of the group's leaders, Alonso Orozco Jr., who saw the negative reactions and charged they were racist. He posted on X that yesterday the group had the opportunity to perform the United States National Anthem for the NFL game between the Chicago Bears and the Eagles and it was incredible to do so with love and respect for a great nation. However, he noted that a huge wave of racist criticism has emerged. What followed was a United States senator seeing an opportunity to dive into the fray that had nothing to do with United States Senate business. Arizona's Ruben Gallego came to the defense of the mariachi band. Here I am, a United States sportswriter, writing mariachi band controversy play-by-play anyway. The dispassionate analysis the online exchange missed is that the NFL is indeed doing hard and consistent work to take America's game international.

Mexico might see an NFL franchise decades from now, but getting there likely means starting with games played abroad and teams based in Europe first. That business move has already angered some American fans who feel they are losing out when contests ship overseas. That sentiment probably explains part of the backlash against the mariachi band. Yet, to be fair, unkind comments did appear online while other artists chose unorthodox approaches like playing bagpipes for the national anthem without facing similar heat. All of this happened on the internet, nowhere near a stadium. Nobody ran onto the field playing a banjo to defend America's honor. One more thing: criticizing a performance is not racist. Having a dissenting opinion about who performs or how they do it is also not racist. It is America, amigos.