Beyoncé’s “Formation” song is still getting under people’s skin. Her decision to perform the single at the Super Bowl 50 is currently the subject of many debates and even protests. Politicians, journalists, and even law enforcement have spoken out against her performance, and the attacks keep coming.
Several pro-law enforcement groups and individuals have used the hashtag #BoycottBeyonce on social media. One group, Proud of the Blues, is taking their boycott one step further. The organization set up an Eventbrite page explaining their upcoming “Anti-Beyoncé” protest that will take place on Feb. 16 in front of the NFL headquarters building in New York. The page states that the purpose of the protest is to “tell the NFL we don’t want hate speech & racism at the Superbowl ever again!”
Here’s a closer look into why Beyoncé is facing such harsh backlash.
“Formation” was not entirely catering to White folks.
An artist like Beyoncé is generally race-neutral in her lyrics, so switching things up for “Formation” was obviously a shock to some fans. “Saturday Night Live” recently aired a hilarious sketch in which the apocalypse began simply because Beyoncé debuted her new song and video. White people were horrified that Beyoncé was acknowledging her Blackness and seemed to be addressing a Black audience. “Maybe the song … isn’t for us,” a confused character said in the sketch. A woman replied, “But usually everything is!” Some White people really do feel excluded and aggravated when Black people are only addressing other Black people. This is why the phrase “All Lives Matter” was created.
