Children from a middle school choir in North Carolina gave an emotional performance of our country’s national anthem at New York’s 9/11 memorial, but were forced to stop by a security guard.
The reason? In typical New York fashion, the kids needed to secure a permit in order to perform at the memorial.
That’s right – a children’s choir needed government permission to sing our national anthem, honoring the victims of the worst terrorist attack on American soil.
What is happening with our country?
Now, don’t get me wrong. There is a reason for the permitting requirement. You don’t want a flash mob singing random songs on such hallowed ground. But how hard would it have been to allow these kids to finish their emotional effort and then tell the teachers afterwards of the requirements?
Via Fox Carolina:
A video of officials at the 9/11 memorial in New York stopping a Waynesville Middle School Chorus in the middle of performing the national anthem is making waves on social media.
The choral group is visiting the Big Apple this week and performing at several venues, including St. John’s Cathedral.
Principal Trevor Putnam said an “unfortunate chain of events” led to the sudden halting of an impromptu performance at the 9/11 memorial site.
Turns out, groups must obtain a permit before performing, because the site is considered a burial site and has lots of rules and regulations.
“We understand that it’s a very sacred place,” Putnam said.
The choral director asked one guard for permission to sing, but another guard asked that the performance be stopped.
While there are certainly two understandable sides to this, the incident really never should have taken place. The guard was being respectful of a sacred memorial, but had he handled the incident differently he wouldn’t be part of a viral video today.
And he wouldn’t be the subject of unnecessary scorn either.
The comments pouring in on social media have been overwhelmingly sympathetic to the kids, and dismayed with the security guard.
One person wrote that the whole thing was “sickening” while another added that what the guard did was “BS.”
Another offered advice, saying “The guard should have stood there and listen(ed); when the kids were done, he should have politely thanked the Principal and informed them that they needed a permit (which I think is awful) to do that.”
Comment: Should the kids have been able to sing the national anthem at the 9/11 memorial, or is it such a sacred place that no tributes should be held here? Share your thoughts below.
