Dominic Sandbrook

And we, or more properly Dominic, left you with the suggestion that the Star Spangled Banner might be, as well as the glorification of America and liberty, the glorification of slavery as well.

And I can only imagine we'll have had thousands of Americans cancelling their subscriptions.

But you were not the first to come up with this allegation, right?

So what's going on here?

Because to the degree that I am familiar with the lyrics, I don't see anything about slavery in it.

I mean, there's one mention of slaves, isn't there?

But that's about it.

See, I would not have said that.

I would have said that these are insults applied to soldiers fighting under the British crown.

Right.

That dates from the years of the American Revolution.

Yes.

And the slaves are the British soldiers who are subjects to a king.

And the hirelings are the Hessian mercenaries who were brought in.

And so they're applying that rhetoric now in a new war.

That's what I would say.

That's what I had assumed.

Loyalism.

Exactly.

Yeah.