Christine Sun Kim called out the television network Fox Sports today for limiting her airtime during her presentation at the Super Bowl LIV game on Sunday night, where she performed the US National Anthem in American Sign Language from the field’s 40-yard line. Though the deaf artist’s performance was supposed to be broadcast concurrently while pop star Demi Lovato and Gospel singer Yolanda Adams sang, she was only visible for a few seconds during the pre-game show of what is the most-watched night of television in the US, netting 102 million viewers this year. On the Fox Sports website, were a “bonus feed” was supposed to be focused on Sun Kim entirely, the cameras cut away to show players from the San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs observing the anthem with their hands over their hearts.
The artist, whose work was included in the 2019 Whitney Biennial and last year’s Art Night London art festival, describes herself as “angry and exasperated” in an opinion article published in the New York Times. “As a child of immigrants, a grandchild of refugees, a deaf woman of color, an artist and a mother, I was proud to perform the national anthem,” she writes. “I wanted to my express my patriotism and honor the country that I am proud to be from — a country that, at its core, believes in equal rights for all citizens, including those with disabilities. I see my performance as part of that expression.” A video of her full performance is on the National Association of the Deaf's YouTube channel and below:
