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“Fifteen years ago, the cultural critic Greil Marcus wrote of Jimi's performance of our national anthem as "his great NO to the war, to racism, to whatever you or he might think of and want gone. But then that discord shattered, and for more than four and a half long, complex minutes Hendrix pursued each invisible crack in a vessel that had once been whole, feeling out and exploring and testing himself and his music against anguish, rage, fear, hate, love offered, and love refused. When he finished, he had created an anthem that could never be summed up and that would never come to rest. In the end it was a great YES, both a threat and a beckoning, an invitation to America to match its danger, glamour, and freedom."

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In late 1969, Jimi Hendrix wrote a poem celebrating Woodstock, saying with words what his music had in August: "500,000 halos outshined the mud and history. We washed and drank in God's tears of joy. And for once, and for everyone, the truth was not still a mystery.”
― Michael Lang, The Road to Woodstock

“Miles Davis said there are two categories of thinking: the truth and white bullshit. The national anthem is white bullshit.”
― Tia Williams, Seven Days in June

“If you were a country," I said, "what would your national anthem be?"
I meant a pre-existing song -- "What a Wonderful World" or "Que Sera, Sera" or something to make it a joke, like "Hey Ya!" ("I would like, more than anything else, for my nation to be shaken like a Polaroid picture.")”
― David Levithan, The Lover's Dictionary

“Being in a wheelchair has made everyday things difficult. Things you wouldn't imagine. Like the looks I get at high school basketball games when they tell everyone to stand for the National Anthem.”
― Travis Jeremiah Dahnke, Write like no one is reading

“In order to be FREE, you have to be BRAVE.”
― Jeanette Coron

“Freedom and bravery—there’s a reason we sing of them in our national anthem. We are free because we are brave.”
― Ali Master

“Flag Cruelty Fraught (The New American Anthem)

Say, can you see,
The darkness we've caused?
Our star spangled banner,
Is a flag cruelty fraught.
It ain't land of the free,
It ain't home of the brave.
Where looks define dignity,
Is but humanity's grave.
Slavery is alive as racism,
Bigotry still claims dominion.
First we must treat these ailments,
Or else, for us there is no dawn.
O say, it's time to abolish all false glory.
Forget valor, let's first practice equality.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Gente Mente Adelante: Prejudice Conquered is World Conquered