Appalling Behavior In Denver

A speech by the mayor to inform citizens of the status of the city set the stage for a firestorm yesterday. The mayor introduced a woman named Rene Marie to lead the singing of the National Anthem before the State of the City address. They received far more than they bargained for:

Mayor John Hickenlooper's annual State of the City address may get more attention for what wasn't included than what was.

At the start of the event Tuesday morning, City Council President Michael Hancock introduced singer Rene Marie to perform the national anthem.

Instead, she performed the song "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing," which is also known as the "black national anthem."

When she finished, the audience responded with mild applause. The national anthem was never performed.

Marie told 9NEWS she kept her plans to switch songs quiet until the very last moment. She says only she, her husband and a friend knew she was going to sing something other than the "Star-Spangled Banner."

She says she wanted to express her love of her country by mixing the lyrics of "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing" with the melody of the "Star-Spangled Banner."

"When I decided to sing my version, what was going on in my head was: 'I want to express how I feel about living in the United States, as a black woman, as a black person,'" said Marie. ...

City Councilman Charlie Brown took to talk radio Tuesday afternoon to criticize the absence of the national anthem at the State of the City proceedings.

"There is no substitute for the national anthem, period," Brown said. "And that's what really bothered me. You know when we fly the flag, the American flag, it's always the highest flag, as it should be. And that didn't come across today, that didn't happen today."

In hindsight, both Brown and Hickenlooper say they should have stopped Marie or began singing themselves.

Marie says if she had the benefit of doing it over, she would sing the same song.

When asked if she would apologize for what happened she said, "No I do not."

Should have, gentlemen? Hindsight, please. Only after being embarrassed and taking it on the chin from the residents of Denver do they now think they should have stepped in. If I were mayor, at the very least, I would have cut the feed to the microphone, and asked Ms. Marie to either sing the National anthem, or remove herself from the stage. To utilize the "black national anthem" instead of our own is quite appalling. This nation is not made up of black people. We are a melting pot, and the Star-Spangled Banner has been the official National Anthem of America since March 3, 1931 when President Herbert Hoover signed the congressional resolution recognizing it as such.

But this is the sort of behavior we now see out of the Left. They will do what they want, when they want, for whatever reason they desire because of how they feel. If this were done by someone at the opening of a sporting event, they would be booed rightly. (Do it in New York or Chicago, and they might be pelted with trash.)

This woman should not be praised. She should be roundly criticized, and her actions should call attention to those wishing to hire this woman, who has sang for ten years professionally, as to whether she can be trusted to sing what she was chosen to sing. As far as we are concerned, if her talents are motivated by politics -- to make a political statement -- she should never work again. And Denver should get prepared for this because the same sort of thought process is about to descend on it come this August.

A tip of the hat to Captain Ed Morrissey @ Hot Air for this story.

Marcie