What is the Black national anthem? Here’s why the NFL plays ‘Lift Every Voice and Sing’ before games

What is the black national anthem? Here’s why the NFL is playing “Lift Every Voice and Sing” before games initially appear on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as your preferred source by clicking here.

GO TO:

• What is the black national anthem?

• When will “Lift Every Voice and Sing?” » become the national anthem of black people?

• Black National Anthem Lyrics

• Why the NFL Plays the Black National Anthem Before Games

The pageantry of football games continues to grow in recent years, as the NFL has created a high-profile atmosphere regarding its games.

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A recent addition to pregame festivities at football games is the black national anthem, which the league plays along with “The Star Spangled Banner” and “America the Beautiful.” Although a relatively new addition to football games, the black national anthem has been a part of American history for over a century.

In a league made up largely of African-American players, the black national anthem is a way for the NFL to honor the history of its players. Here’s a look at the black national anthem and why the NFL decided to play it before games.

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What is the black national anthem?

The black national anthem is “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” a song that represents equality and justice for African Americans. The song was originally written as a poem to celebrate Abraham Lincoln’s birthday, but has since become a rallying cry to represent the issues that African Americans have faced throughout American history.

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Many African-American artists, including Beyoncé, have performed their own versions of the song.

Who wrote “Lift Every Voice and Sing?” »

“List Every Voice and Sing” was written by two brothers, James Weldon Johnson and John Rosamond Johnson, in 1900. James Weldon Johnson wrote the lyrics as a hymn and poem, while John Rosamond Johnson later created the music.

James Weldon Johnson was also the first African-American leader of the NAACP, in addition to being a lawyer, professor and writer.

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When will “Lift Every Voice and Sing?” » become the national anthem of black people?

The song was first performed by a children’s choir at the Stanton School, a segregated school where James Weldon Johnson worked as principal. Then, in 1919, the NAACP declared it the national anthem for black people, a decade before “The Star Spangled Banner” was named the national anthem of the United States.

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“Lift Every Voice and Sing” was particularly important during the civil rights era, as the civil rights movement used the song as a rallying cry in the 1950s and 1960s.

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Black National Anthem Lyrics

Below are the lyrics to “Lift Every Voice And Sing,” written by James Weldon Johnson:

Lift every voice and sing
Until earth and sky ring,
Ring out the harmonies of Liberty;
Let our joy rise
High as the listening sky,
Let it resonate as loud as the rolling sea.
Sing a song full of faith that the dark past taught us,
Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us,
Facing the rising sun of our new day begun
Let us march until victory is won.

Stony the path we have traveled,
Bitter the rod of punishment,
Felt at the time when unborn hope was dead;
Yet, with a regular rhythm,
Let’s not have our feet tired
To come to the place our fathers longed for?
We have traveled a path that has been watered with tears,
We came, walking in the blood of the massacred,
Out of a dark past,
Until now we are finally standing
Where the white glow of our bright star is projected.

God of our weary years,
God of our silent tears,
You who brought us this far on the path;
You who by your power have led us to the light,
Keep us forever on the path, we pray.
Lest our feet depart from the places our God where we met you,
Lest our hearts, drunk with the wine of the world, forget you;
In the shadow under your hand,
May we stand forever.
Faithful to our God,
Faithful to our native land.

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Why the NFL Plays the Black National Anthem Before Games

The NFL began playing the Black national anthem before 2020 games as part of the league’s efforts to recognize racial injustice. Initially, the song was performed before every Week 1 game in 2020, and it has since been performed during the pregame festivities of every Super Bowl since 2021, when Alicia Keys performed the song during Super Bowl 55.