WASHINGTON — Do not tune into the Tremendous Bowl hoping for a break from the tumultuous politics gripping the U.S.

The NFL is dealing with stress forward of Sunday’s recreation between the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots to take a extra express stance towards the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement. Greater than 184,000 folks have signed a petition calling on the league to denounce the potential presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement on the Tremendous Bowl, which is being held at Levi’s Stadium within the San Francisco Bay Space. The liberal group MoveOn plans to ship the petition to the NFL’s New York Metropolis headquarters on Tuesday.

In the meantime, anticipation is constructing round how Unhealthy Bunny, the halftime present’s Spanish-speaking headliner, will deal with the second. He has criticized President Donald Trump on all the things from his hurricane response in his native Puerto Rico to his remedy of immigrants. On Sunday evening, he blasted ICE whereas accepting an award on the Grammys. His newest tour skipped the continental U.S. due to fears that his followers may very well be focused by immigration brokers.

Trump has stated he does not plan to attend this yr’s recreation, not like final yr, and he has derided Unhealthy Bunny as a “horrible selection.” A Republican senator is looking it “the woke bowl.” And a distinguished conservative group plans to carry an alternate present that it hopes will steal consideration from the primary occasion.

The Tremendous Bowl is without doubt one of the few remaining cultural touchstones considered by tens of millions of individuals in actual time and the halftime present is not any stranger to controversy, maybe most notably Janet Jackson’s 2004 efficiency wherein her breast was briefly uncovered. However there are few parallels to this yr’s recreation, which has the potential to turn into an uncommon mixture of sports activities, leisure, politics and protest. And it’ll unfold at a tinderbox second for the U.S., simply two weeks after Alex Pretti’s killing by federal brokers in Minneapolis reignited a nationwide debate over the Trump administration’s hard-line legislation enforcement ways.

“The Tremendous Bowl is meant to be an escape, proper? We’re speculated to go there to not have to speak in regards to the severe issues of this nation,” stated Tiki Barber, a former participant for the New York Giants who performed within the Tremendous Bowl in 2001 and has since attended a number of as a commentator. “I hope it doesn’t devolve, as a result of if it does, then I feel we’re actually shedding contact with what’s necessary in our society.”

The 31-year-old Unhealthy Bunny, born in Puerto Rico as Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, has elevated Latino music into the mainstream and gained international fame with songs virtually completely in Spanish — one thing that irks lots of his conservative detractors. He has leaned into the controversy, referring to the halftime present when he hosted “Saturday Night time Dwell” in October by joking “everyone is pleased about it — even Fox Information.”

He segued into a number of sentences in Spanish, expressing Latino pleasure within the achievement, and completed by saying in English, “In the event you didn’t perceive what I simply stated, you have got 4 months to be taught!”

Those that observe him intently doubt that he’ll again down now.

“He has made it very clear what he stands for,” stated Vanessa Díaz, a professor at Loyola Marymount College and co-author of “P FKN R: How Unhealthy Bunny Grew to become the International Voice of Puerto Rican Resistance.” “So I can’t think about that this may all go away with the Tremendous Bowl.”

The halftime present is a collaboration between the NFL, Roc Nation and Apple Music. Roc Nation curates the performers and Apple Music distributes the efficiency whereas the NFL in the end controls the stage, broadcast and branding.

The NFL, which is working to broaden its attraction internationally, together with into Latin America, stated it by no means thought-about eradicating Unhealthy Bunny from the halftime present even after criticism from Trump and a few of his supporters.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell on Monday described the singer as “one of many nice artists on this planet,” in addition to somebody who understands the facility of the Tremendous Bowl efficiency “to unite folks and to have the ability to carry folks collectively.”

“I feel artists up to now have performed that. I feel Unhealthy Bunny understands that. And I feel you may have an ideal efficiency,” Goodell instructed reporters throughout his annual Tremendous Bowl press convention.

About half of People accredited of Unhealthy Bunny because the halftime performer, in keeping with an October ballot from Quinnipiac College. However there have been substantial gaps with about three-quarters of Democrats backing the decide in comparison with simply 16% of Republicans. About 60% of Black and Hispanic adults accredited of the choice in comparison with 41% of whites.

Republicans are keen to keep up Latino help of their bid to maintain management of Congress. However because the Tremendous Bowl attracts close to, many within the GOP have saved up their Unhealthy Bunny critiques.

Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, the previous head soccer coach at Auburn College who’s now operating for governor, derided the “Woke Bowl” on Newsmax final week and stated he’ll watch an alternate occasion hosted by Turning Level USA.

The group based by the late conservative activist Charlie Kirk stated Monday that Child Rock, a vocal Trump supporter, could be among the many performers at its occasion.

In current days, Division of Homeland Safety official Jeff Brannigan hosted a collection of personal calls with native officers and the NFL wherein he indicated that ICE doesn’t plan to conduct any legislation enforcement actions the week of the Tremendous Bowl or on the recreation, in keeping with two NFL officers with direct data of the conversations.

ICE just isn’t anticipated to be amongst greater than a dozen DHS-related companies offering safety on the recreation, the officers stated, talking on the situation of anonymity to debate non-public conversations.

Whereas that’s the plan, some fear that Trump and his MAGA allies who lead DHS can change their minds forward of Sunday’s recreation given their current statements.

DHS official Corey Lewandowski, a key adviser to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, stated in October that ICE brokers could be conducting immigration enforcement on the recreation.

“There may be nowhere which you could present protected haven to people who find themselves within the nation illegally, not the Tremendous Bowl, not anyplace else,” he stated on the time.

Requested to make clear ICE’s position this week, DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin refused to say whether or not federal immigration brokers shall be current for the Tremendous Bowl.

“Those that are right here legally and never breaking different legal guidelines don’t have anything to concern,” she stated. “We won’t disclose future operations or focus on personnel. Tremendous Bowl safety will entail a whole-of-government response carried out in keeping with the U.S. Structure.”

The progressive group MoveOn will host a Tuesday rally exterior the NFL headquarters in New York to current a petition telling the league, “No ICE on the Tremendous Bowl.”

“This yr’s Tremendous Bowl ought to be remembered for giant performs and Unhealthy Bunny, not masked and armed ICE brokers operating across the stadium inflicting chaos, violence, and trauma on followers and stadium staff,” MoveOn spokesperson Britt Jacovich stated. “The NFL can’t keep on the sidelines, the league has a accountability to behave like adults, shield Tremendous Bowl followers and stadium staff, and preserve ICE out of the sport.”

In an interview, San Francisco mayor Daniel Lurie was optimistic that the occasion could be a hit even in a politically tense local weather.

“We’re going to preserve everyone protected — our residents, our guests,” he stated. “Clearly with all the things happening, we’re staying on high of it, monitoring all the things. However I count on all the things to be protected and enjoyable.”

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Peoples reported from New York.