Canadian crowd boos U.S. national anthem during NBA game
(YouTube)

‘A global joke’: Canadians boo America’s national anthem during a basketball game, setting the tone for the next four years

Sports is often a world that’s averse when it comes to discussing politics. But with Trump’s tariffs against Canada in place, politics inevitably bled into the recent Los Angeles Clippers vs. Toronto Raptors game.

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Kyra Daniels, who sang the Star-Spangled Banner, was booed throughout the anthem. The U.S. national anthem could barely be heard amidst the loud jeers of the sports fans present in the venue, although it’s clear that the fans in the arena had no issues with the singer herself. Right after the U.S. anthem, the crowd started cheering for Daniels when she began singing Canada’s national anthem—O Canada.

Social media users were not surprised by the reactions of the Canadians present in the venue. President Trump imposed steep tariffs on all exports from Canada, and this earned the ire of Canadian citizens. One X user wrote, “The USA is creating enemies everywhere for no reason at all, and then [the President] is lying to his country about it.” Another X user sneered and wrote, “Great to see Trump made America into a global joke.” The sentiment is, President Trump is to blame for the way Americans are being perceived on an international level. It also doesn’t help that the game was held only a couple of days after the tariffs against Canada took effect.

Can’t take what they dish out

Not everyone was happy to have the American anthem booed by an arena. In reaction to the boos, one X user said the U.S. “no longer needs to support” Canada. This parrots the claim that Canada has been solely dependent on the United States. It’s as if U.S.-Canada trade relations hadn’t benefitted Americans at all with imports of crude oil and petroleum gas through the years. Whether they think they no longer need Canada will be seen in the coming months.

Meanwhile, another commenter on social media argued that American players should “refuse to play” against the Raptors. That seems to be in line with Trump’s plans for isolationism, but shouldn’t sports be “kept out” of politics? Sarcasm aside, the Raptors would have nothing to lose. After all, they won 115-108 against the LA Clippers in this game.


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Vanessa Esguerra
Vanessa Esguerra (She/They) has been a Contributing Writer for The Mary Sue since 2023. After graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Economy, she (happily) rejected law school in 2021 and has been a full-time content writer since. Vanessa is currently taking her Master's degree in Japanese Studies in hopes of deepening her understanding of the country's media culture in relation to pop culture, women, and queer people like herself. She speaks three languages but still manages to get lost in the subways of Tokyo with her clunky Japanese. Fueled by iced coffee brewed from local cafés in Metro Manila, she also regularly covers anime and video games while queuing for her next match in League of Legends.