On February 7, 2016, Super Bowl 50 was held in San Francisco, Calif.. The Denver Broncos clinched a 24-10 win against the Carolina Panthers. However, the big thing many people were talking (complaining) about was Beyonce's two-minute portion of the halftime show. In typical Beyonce fashion, she caused a lot of conversation about her artistic vision. On February 6, the day before Super Bowl 50, Beyonce released her new song, "Formation," with a powerful music video to follow. This also included a short performance of the new song at the next day's show. Many claimed Beyonce's powerful message was "anti-police" and a "double standard". Let's dive into why her powerful message was so controversial.
Before I get into this issue let me address something. I am a proud biracial man with a black mother and a white father. Also, I am grateful and full of pride for my heritage passed down by my mother and father. Why I address this is because my message may be perceived as "pro-black" and "anti-white." Wrong! I am defending the side of me that constantly gets criticized for its black pride while living in a world that claims "all lives matter."
Now back to Queen Bey. While many "Fox News puppets" and "Facebook preachers" claim that this performance/song is so controversial, it really isn't, to be honest. While watching the show, Beyonce fans--myself included--were grooving and yelling "Yaaas" every second she was on screen. Not to exclude Bruno and Coldplay, but I truly feel Beyonce owned that whole halftime show. Beyonce is a modern-day example of a "true entertainer." While killing every single move, she also provided a message bolder than any artist today.
Now let's break down the "controversial" attributes of this whole thing. At the beginning of the performance, Beyonce and her dancers (dressed as Black Panthers) got into an X formation, which led people to believe that this was supposed to resemble the X in "Malcolm X," a famous figure in the civil rights movement of the mid to late 1960s who believed violence was necessary to present the message of black people's anger at the injustice and racism towards our race. While this may be true, it is not at all bad to honor a part of black history. As violent and scary as Malcolm X's tactics were, he truly was a huge part in the civil rights movement. This may seem like I am justifying violence, but this is really justifying people whose voices are constantly ignored and pushed to the side. Sometimes it takes horrific actions to truly speak for those who are not being heard no matter how hard they scream.
I don't have to write much to get this across, so let me express this next part in a series of GIFs:
Well, mister, let me show what you didn't hear. As you can read, this is not an anti-police message that she is expressing; this is a "black people are pissed off because of the wrongful deaths of our people by police" message. We commend the police for their safety and protection, but it would be nice if they would stop shooting our people, please and thank you! Granted, not everyone they shoot is innocent, but whatever happened to shooting and not killing them? I understand self-dense, but learning how to properly shoot a gun is something police should learn before joining the force... right? Just checking.
Here's another:
Not to pull the black card, but honestly think about this question. What if it was someone like Bono, Madonna or Lady Gaga crying out against injustice against blacks? No one would turn an eye--but since it is someone who is black, it becomes negative and degrading instead of empowering and uplifting. However, I'm glad it was an artist of color to express this message because why not have someone who actually knows what prejudice and discrimination feel like? The feeling of being watched every time you walk into a store. The feeling of having a little old white lady hide her purse when you sit close to her at a sporting event. The feeling of having police stare you down when you're innocently walking down the street.
You know, a lot of people tend to have a lot to say about issues they have yet to understand or experience. Once your race is being innocently decimated by the same people who are supposed to protect us, then you can rightfully say Beyonce's song is anti-police (which it isn't). I even saw a post on Facebook saying that since it was okay for her dancers to dress like Black Panthers, next year it should be okay for a white performer to have his or her dancers dress like KKK members. This makes me sick, because one group used violence to express a message no one would hear and the other used violence based on pure ignorance (the KKK, if you're not sure).
This topic has me upset because it's another case of having our forms of expressions being torn down. Another case of our people being silenced because it "upsets the white man." Another case of people of color being patronized for being and showing that we're upset. I know this sounds like the whole "woe is me" excuse, but come back to me when your people get a stare down everywhere you go because of the color of your skin.
This may be seen as an attack on white people, and it isn't. I have a lot of white friends and family members whom I love dearly. This is me saying that my people and I are tired of being discriminated against and judged differently because of the color of our skin. This issue is bigger than Beyonce's performance; however, her performance/song/video is a huge catalyst to having our message heard. Plus, she's proud to be black and refuses to conform to the popular agenda of money or fame.
All I'm asking for is equality, justice, and a little respect. I mean, we (people of color) have earned it, for goodness' sake.
