MAGA banner at Kentucky high school football game leads to social media debate

A banner with a Donald Trump slogan written on it held by Anderson County High School cheerleaders prior to their school’s football game Friday has led to a social media debate.

Video posted to Facebook by Anderson County High School shows the cheerleaders holding the banner that read, “Make America Great Again Trump Those Patriots.” The Anderson County football team was set to play Lincoln County High School, whose nickname is the Patriots.

Football players from Anderson County then plowed through the banner to cheers from the crowd. A separate video shows a player holding an American flag exiting the locker room, which is not uncommon.

They went on to win the game 28-14, but the Donald Trump-themed MAGA message on the banner continues to be a hot topic three days later.

Some people conveyed their disagreement with the banner on the video’s comments.

“It’s a disrespectful and disgusting display,” one man wrote.

“Really? That banner? I can’t believe I actually attended this school,” a woman said.

Others called it a “teachable moment” for the cheerleaders or simply an “embarrassment.”

The theme for the game was an “America-out,” where students wear America-pride clothing, according to a Twitter page for the school’s student section. There were people who supported the banner, commenting about the play on words of the message.

“Those girls put excellent thought into the banner. Kudos for them!” one woman said.

“Like him or not he is our president currently and they were simply making a play on his name, the theme and the opponent,” another commenter said.

In the 2015 presidential election, more than 8,200 people in Anderson County voted for Trump. This represented 72.2 percent of voters.

This story was originally published September 30, 2019 at 8:37 AM.