Cuz nothing brings us all together better than angry @Beyonce shaking her a** & shouting “Negro” repeatedly.” The sarcastic tweet from conservative commentator Michelle Malkin just begins to summarize the harsh backlash surrounding a good old-fashioned American controversy following the Super Bowl 50 Halftime Show.

Rush Limbaugh had similarly degrading words for Beyoncé, describing her as “representative of the cultural decay and the political decay and the social rot that is befalling our country.” The media and many Americans ruthlessly punished the American icon. But for what crime?

Beyoncé’s crime was her celebration of blackness. The singer performed her brand new song, “Formation.” The new release is a work dedicated to her own black heritage and to rewriting the single story surrounding the history of black Americans.

Weaving contemporary politics with a presentation of history, Beyoncé is able to both celebrate blackness and create a platform to question the injustices that are a part of black lives.

In the new song and video, Beyoncé is unashamedly black. Performing at the Halftime Show, she sent a clear message to the flat screens across America. She forced Americans to not only confront her blackness and her pride, but to also face the current injustices experienced by black Americans.

On the field, she and her all-female squad donned outfits referencing the Black Panther Movement. Calling the women into “formation,” Beyoncé established a call to action to continue the fight for black equality and to take pride in being black despite all odds.

The entire event did not sit well with many Americans. Citing uncomfortability and inappropriateness, the mainly white critics clearly liked her a lot more when she was apolitical and sang lyrics that the average white American could sing along with.

The extremely negative backlash Beyoncé received because she sang about the concept of race only strengthens her message.

The newfound hatred and disapproval, vocalized or not, is mere evidence of the conversation that so desperately needs to be had. The discontent raises serious question to the claim that America has moved beyond race. Beyoncé’s challenge to this notion unveiled the deeply rooted racism ever so prevalent in our country.

As the media may present, Beyoncé’s reference and support of the Black Panther Party should not have white Americans up in arms.

The Black Panther Party was certainly militant and radical, but it is so greatly misrepresented in contemporary conversation. Any comparison of this party to the Klu Klux Klan is detrimental to conversations regarding black history and black power.

The Black Panther Party was not created to destroy another race, nor did they systematically beat, terrorize, lynch, and murder people based on the color of their skin. Rather, it was created to protect and liberate the black communities from the system stacked against them.

Beyoncé’s performance was not a call for a hit on the white race. Rather, it was a call to embrace blackness and continue the work towards equality and justice that is so evidently needed. Because the truth of the matter is, she’s telling a story of injustice and inequality that desperately needs to be shared.

Beyoncé’s role as a female activist is even more significant given the injustices affecting American women of color. The number of women behind bars has increased by over 800 percent since 1997, and a disproportionate number of them are women of color.

There is also a stark difference in the wages between men and women, but this gap only increases when women of color are singled out.

Studies have shown that while the median net worth for white women is around $41,500, the median net worth for Hispanic women is around $120, and the median net worth for black women is around $100.

These vast disparities between races are not due to an inability to succeed or a lack of effort. Instead, they can be explained by systematic policies and decisions that benefit the white population and have been fostering inequalities since the beginning.

We are only scraping the surface of the stark injustices of a system that survives on people’s blindness to such issues. Instead of degrading Beyoncé, and instead of blaming black Americans, her performance should be celebrated as an important piece of black culture and it should be the spark of change. It is time to have these conversations and it is time to take the blinders off.

So, the next time you are scrolling through Facebook and a meme pops up or you are glancing at a headline, challenge the single story presented in front of you.

We need to examine why our country reacted so harshly to a black female’s bold performance. Ditch the hatred and instead ask the questions we desperately need to ask, and that Beyoncé both intentionally and unintentionally provoked.

Why are the police killing black Americans? Why do we struggle with the topic of race? Why are white Americans so deeply threatened with a celebration of blackness? What is the true history behind our current situation?

Beyoncé did not threaten the lives of white Americans, but she certainly challenged the white domination that governs the country.