It’s Super Bowl weekend. As a die-hard Dallas Cowboys fan, I haven’t really had a strong rooting interest in the Super Bowl since Super Bowl 30. This weekend's game is Super Bowl 57, so that should give you a good idea of the length of my football frustrations. Add to that my lifelong fandom of Vanderbilt football and you start to get an idea of why I prefer hockey.
But, regardless of personal team preference, the Super Bowl is a huge, unofficial holiday in America. Certain Tennessee lawmakers recently put forward the idea of making it an officially recognized holiday. Sen. London Lamar and Rep. Joe Towns Jr. have proposed making the Monday following the Super Bowl officially known as Super Bowl Monday, a government-recognized holiday that could potentially replace Columbus Day.
Who wouldn’t like a day to recover after being out late at a Super Bowl party? I think more Americans are passionate about celebrating the Super Bowl than Columbus anyway. Have you ever stuffed your face with wings and pizza at a Columbus party? So, this is a proposed law I think I can get behind.
This brings to mind another recent proposal by state lawmakers, this one by our very own representative, Paul Sherrell. Rep. Sherrell, along with state Sen. Frank Niceley, proposed, at the start of Black History Month, renaming a portion of John Lewis Way in Nashville to make it President Donald Trump Boulevard. The bill would affect the section of the road between Dr. Martin L. King Jr. Blvd and James Robertson Parkway.
John Lewis was a celebrated pioneer of the civil rights movement who attended college in Nashville and fought for racial justice there. Say what you will about Donald Trump (and plenty of people have, both good and bad) but honestly, who (apart from apparently Paul Sherrell and his partner in this bill) thinks it’s a good look to try to take away an honor from a Black leader and civil rights hero?
I’m sure there are plenty of roads that need naming that Sherrell could focus his efforts to honor the former president on, but how can a politician be so blind to the political optics of trying to strip away a small tribute to a hero of the Black community, especially in Nashville, to give it to a figure with no real ties to Tennessee? Of all the times to do it, making the proposal during Black History Month seems to be another misstep.
Naming a street after someone is nothing more than a symbolic gesture. The symbolism behind attempting to make this move on that particular street in that particular city during this particular month is not a particularly good look for the state of Tennessee.
Anyway, back to the Super Bowl. Super Bowl Monday sounds like a great idea to me. As for the game, I’m predicting 35-14, Eagles.
Standard managing editor Seth Wright can be reached at (931) 473-2191
