A Canadian singing group called The Tenors received some backlash on Tuesday at MLB’s 87th All-Star Game after one of the performers’s made a decision to wing his part of O Canada to include the saying “all lives matter”.
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Mr Pereira changed the line from, “With glowing hearts we see thee rise, the True North strong and free” to “We’re all brothers and sisters”.
Protest: Pereira (pictured right in 2015) held up a sign saying “All Lives Matter” (left) and changed the lyrics of the Canadian national anthem to include that phrase.
Remigo Pereira inserted the words “all lives matter” into “O Canada” and held up a sign saying the same thing with “United We Stand” on the flipside during the performance.
A controversial rendition of O Canada sung by a member of The Tenors was an attempt to undermine the rallying cry of Black Lives Matter, a co-founder of the Toronto chapter said Wednesday. The members say that they won’t allow Pereira to perform with them until further notice.
Pereira has since tried to explain his actions on Twitter and even went so far as to post a message on SoundCloud, titled Black Lives Do Matter, where he clearly sounds distraught by the barbed criticisms. She said the phrase “all lives matter”, which can be found on social media, comes from people who feel threatened by black people demanding justice in their communities.
“I don’t agree with black people dying”.
Hudson said the controversy doesn’t obscure the message of Black Lives Matter and the impact of the altered lyrics, although negative, is minimal.
It seems Remigio Pereira has gone from a Canadian Tenor to an unemployed Tenor.
‘I’ve been so moved lately by the tragic loss of life and I hoped for a positive statement that would bring us ALL together, ‘ he wrote.
The group said they were unaware of Mr Remigio ‘s plans to change the anthem.
What do you think about the change to Canada’s anthem?!
The Tenors, a group based in British Columbia, caused a stir at Petco Park with their unexpected actions while singing “O Canada”.
‘Our honest apologies and regrets go out to everybody who witnessed this shameful act, to our fellow Canadians, to Major League Baseball, to our friends, families, fans and to all those affected.
In addition to Pereira, the Tenors also consists Clifton Murray, Fraser Walters and Victor Micallef.
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Those worldwide performances include gigs at the 2010 Winter Olympics opening ceremonies, the 2012 Queen’s Jubilee in England and the 2014 Stanley Cup Final.
