La Bandera de las Estrellas
The unhinged right-wing has taken to the streets brandishing their pitchforks over the audacity of a new recording of “The Star-Spangled Banner” in Spanish. Deep murmurs of approval arose from the crowd yesterday when Bush weighed in on the matter:
I think the National Anthem ought to be sung in English. And I think people who want to be a citizen of this country ought to learn English, and they ought to learn to sing the National Anthem in English.
The profound irony of this nonsense is that, according to a recent Harris Poll, two-thirds of the clamoring crowd don’t even know the English words to the first verse of “The Star-Spangled Banner” (much less the other verses) and thus have been shouting huzzahs to Bush for suggesting that perhaps they shouldn’t even be citizens. Or maybe this rule about learning to sing the anthem in English doesn’t apply to, you know, white people.
If somebody were suggesting that people be forced to sing the national anthem in Spanish, I could sort of understand the hue and cry (although most people would just hum along the same way they do now when it’s sung in English). But, all that’s going on here is that someone is daring to sing the anthem in a language other than the one in which Jesus sang it.
I also don’t understand why these same people aren’t upset about other assaults of the dusky Spanish-speaking hoards against the Caucasian-scented lyrics of our national anthem. In 1919, the U.S. Bureau of Education commissioned a Spanish translation of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” which the evil liberal assimilationists at the Library of Congress have the temerity to display — in its entirety — on the Library of Congress web site. Where is the outrage over that? Worse, we have The National Anthem Project, chaired by none other than Laura Bush, which offers a mariachi arrangement of the anthem. Dio mio, shouldn’t they be calling for Laura’s head on a stick for this?
UPDATE: Condi joins the assimilationist conspiracy! A Spanish version of the national anthem is also posted on the State Department’s site. Does George know?
April 29th, 2006 at 9:00 am
Why all the fuss? Doesn’t “The Star-Spangled Banner” begin with “Jose can you see?”
May 1st, 2006 at 8:49 pm
I think its your God Given right to sing the national anthem in whatever language you wish. This is America, we all have our rights!
May 2nd, 2006 at 4:00 am
I couldn’t care less what people sing, but this posting shows the lack of understanding - or care for? - the view of Americans. What if this situation were reversed?…the whole situation?
What if this was Americans in Mexico, illegally, demanding to be accepted as blood brothers? Think about ALL of the actions and demands taking place and reverse them. How would you feel if you were a Mexican citizen with deep roots? Honestly…..?
Another thing….the Mexican government is hypocritical concerning this situation. Mexicans demand from us what they deny us. Illegals in Mexico get jail time. The military patrols the southern border. And much more. Heck, non-citizens can’t even protest or be involved in politics in ANY way!
American’s generosity is being insulted and taken as a right by uninvited people. I challenge all to take their complaints back to their own country and make it like America!
May 5th, 2006 at 1:13 pm
It is not the fact that the Anthem has been translated into Spanish. As other people have already said, there are previous Spanish translations (and German too). It is that this version has been presented as an alternative anthem, as “Our Anthem”…Does that mean that MY ANTHEM is not theirs? I find that offensive and disrespectful.
A country’s national anthem is one of the most sacred symbols of that country. I think the people that are behind this anthem translation know that. They don’t want to become Americans, they don’t want to assimilate into their adopted country. You don’t sneak into your neighbor’s home uninvited and once inside try to change the way he runs his house.
If in Mexico or any other Latinamerican country a group of immigrants (legal or not) would have translated the national anthem into another language and paraded around with foreign flags, people would have rioted in the streets