Super Bowl halftime show dancer displays Palestinian, Sudanese flags during Kendrick Lamar performance
NEW ORLEANS — A performer who was part of Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime show was detained by security after waving the Sudanese flag and Palestinian flag together with the words “Sudan” and “Gaza” written on them toward the end of the performance, the NFL said.
The NFL identified the person, who was dressed in black like other dancers on the field, “as part of the 400-member field cast.”
“We commend security for quickly detaining the individual who displayed the flag,” the league said. “He was a part of the 400-member field cast. The individual hid the item on his possession and unveiled it late in the show. No one involved with the production was aware of the individual’s intent.”
The league later said the person will be “banned for life from all NFL stadiums and events.”
A representative for Roc Nation, which produced the show, said, “The act by the individual was neither planned nor part of the production and was never in any rehearsal.”
The New Orleans Police Department said on Monday that there was no arrest or summons in the case.
“As such, the individual will not be identified,” the department said. “The NOPD continues to work with NFL and the halftime production team to ascertain any affiliation the individual may have had with the halftime show.”
A representative for Apple Music, which sponsors the halftime show, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The incident appeared to happen during the last song, “tv off.” Photos and video of the moment showed the person holding the flag up while he stood on the back of a black Grand National car that was featured throughout the performance.
He then jumped off the stage and jogged around the field for about 20 seconds before he was tackled and detained. After the lights went back on, he was walked off the field.
The incident comes a day after three more Israeli hostages were freed by Hamas amid a weekslong ceasefire in their war, and as a bloody civil war continues to rage in Sudan.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations praised the protester for “courageously and peacefully” raising awareness on both issues.
In a post on X, CAIR went on to say that the peaceful protest “should serve as a reminder that many Americans recognize the humanity of those suffering abroad as a result of American foreign policy.”
“This performer risked his career to peacefully raise awareness about human suffering without even causing any significant disruption to the halftime show, and he should be celebrated as a hero,” CAIR wrote.
Rebecca Cohen reported from New York and Jesse Kirsch from New Orleans.
Emilie Dorn, Katie Distler, Maria Piñero and Doha Madani contributed.
