I really enjoyed watching the Super Bowl last night, even though I wasn't as happy about the outcome as I wanted to be (those darn Patriots).

Between Lady Gaga, politically charged commercials, epic catches, and tackles, I thought a lot about how football creates community. Any bunch of people can sit somewhere and watch a game, and no matter their differences, they will connect over what's playing on the screen.

I watched the game with a large group of close friends. My group is about as different as you can get: different majors, interests, social groups, and yet, we still love each other. We all yell at the screen and laugh at the commercials and roll our eyes at bad referee calls, and rant about past Super Bowls (Deflategate, anyone?). Several times during the game, I scrolled through my Twitter feed and most tweets were about the commercials, jokes about a 3-1 lead, and subtle dragging of Tom Brady. A common theme was community, though: several people tweeted about how sports can bring a nation together.

I wholeheartedly agree with this concept, silly as it might seem. Back when the Cubs won the World Series, I felt a sense of camaraderie with my fellow Chicagoans, and there was a tangible sense of joy on the streets. Months later, storefronts still hang "W" flags, and people talk about where they were when the rain delay happened. A baseball game accomplished this major community, in the midst of an incredibly divisive election. I think the Super Bowl also helped to bring community (whether it was through mutual hatred of the Patriots or not) in this point of our nation's history.

I have always disliked the Patriots, not just because I was raised properly, but because I never liked the way they won their games or how their coach behaved, and I honestly would have been much happier if the Steelers had been in Super Bowl LI. That's not how life worked out this year, but I'm glad the Falcons were in it. They put up a great fight and were fun to watch overall.

That said, however, I hope people will find more opportunities than just sports events to bond and create common ground. In the months and years to come, we are going to need our common ground more than ever as we seek to pursue justice and equality for all Americans. If football is just one part of that, all the more reason to watch.