Like so many famous songs of yore, "The Star-Spangled Banner" started as a poem ... It wasn’t until 1818 that Congress decided the flag would have 13 stripes and an additional star for each ...

As such, it is appropriate to consider what the transition means for Black America, and how its musicians have interpreted the “Star Spangled Banner ... In 1983, when Congress passed the ...

Objections to “The Star-Spangled Banner” were as old as the anthem itself. The song hadn’t officially become the national anthem until 1931, at least partly because Congress spent years ...