Which brings me to this one.
My husband and I, were both slightly offended. America The Beautiful was written in 1893 by Katherine Lee Bates, a Wellesley College instructor, after an inspirational trip to the peak of Pikes Peak (in Colorado). Her poem was first published in a weekly journal, The Congregationalist, on the 4th of July, 1895. However, Ms. Bates continued to revise the poem until 1913.
So let's throw back here. 1893. The music was written by Samuel Ward for a hymn of his own. Bates wrote the first draft of the poem in 1893, when she was teaching in Colorado Springs, Colorado. She wrote another version in 1904 and the final version in 1913.
Folks, the fact of the matter is, we are AMERICA which the founding language (LIKE IT OR NOT) is ENGLISH. We are not Germany where you'd expect to hear their country's song in GERMAN if it was being played on the television.
“If we cannot be proud enough as a country to sing 'American the Beautiful' in English in a commercial during the Super Bowl, by a company as American as they come — doggone we are on the road to perdition" -GOP Allen West
I even tweeted to Coca Cola! I said this: "Hey Coke, get your shit together. This is Merica, we sing in English. Get right or get out." As it seemed many others on twitter agreed whole heartedly!
Were you offended? Yes, I am well aware of the mumbo jumbo garbage about America being a melting pot of people etc etc but that doesn't change the bottom line of whom or which we were founded upon, including our native language!!! Just saying!
*all facts about the song america the beautiful were found via google! :)
And can I just say I utterly enjoyed the mini concert? Bruno KILLED IT!
He kept it classy and was fully dressed the entire time! He totally showcased that your talent can always speak for it's self without having less clothes on! :)
I have to completely disagree with you. While English may be the most common and prevalent language in America, it is by no means our "official" language. America is beautiful because of our various flowing rivers, mountains, forests, etc. But what also makes America beautiful are all of the various languages and cultures that help shape "America" as a whole. Growing up as a child, Spanish was prevalent in my home. I'm sure many others around the nation grew up with hearing many different languages other than just English. I LOVED this Coke commercial because it reminded me that while we are all different, we all have one thing that brings us together- America. As Americans, rather than criticizing diversity, we should be applauding it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you. There are so many ways to express the sentiment of the "melting pot" but I think Coke failed in a big way.
ReplyDeleteThis post really pisses me off and I think you completely missed the point. As a fellow teacher you disgust me with your viewpoint but hey, we are all entitled to our own opinion. Why don't you stick to talking about your fake hair.
ReplyDeleteYou, Jen, are a troll of blog world. You may disagree with me, but then you attack me by trying to bad mouth me for trying extensions for a special occasion. Wow, now THATS mature.
Delete