The New York Yankees will no longer play Kate Smith's classic rendition of "God Bless America" during the seventh-inning stretch of home games. Why? Because of some racist songs performed by the singer back in the 30s.
To review, the team has been playing the song after the traditional "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" ever since the September 11th terrorist attacks. But now, the team has learned that Smith also sang some songs that are actually pretty racist – though very accepted at the time. How bad are they?Pretty bad.One is "Pickaninny Heaven" and the other? "That's Why Darkies Were Born."
You heard those right. In “Pickaninny,” lyrics of the song include a line about black children fantasizing about great big watermelons. The other can only be described as an ode to slavery.There are VERY cringeworthy clips of the songs on the right.
Source:USA Today