Michael Strahan is speaking up after days of backlash.
Earlier this week, we reported on the bizarre Michael Strahan “controversy” surrounding his participation in a Veteran’s Day tribute for Fox Sports.
It was a little difficult to understand the vitriol that the TV news anchor and retired athlete received.
Unfortunately, Michael has had to directly address the incident (if one can even call it that). He’s handling this with more tact and grace than his detractors necessarily deserve.
What did Michael Strahan do, exactly?
On Sunday, November 10, Michael Strahan was one of the participants of a Fox Sports special.
At Naval Base San Diego, part of the special included listening to The Star Spangled Banner, the US National Anthem.
While Michael Strahan and his colleagues stood respectfully for the song, Michael Strahan’s hands were positioned at his waist, rather than posing with one hand above his heart.
We conclude our show at the Naval Base San Diego with the national anthem ???????? pic.twitter.com/lDb2g6oF0f
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) November 10, 2024
The video circulated on Twitter and beyond. Whether invited by outrage-bait grifters or for their own mysterious reasons, a number of troll comments emerged in the replies.
Commenters condemned Strahan, accusing him of insulting both the military and America itself. Some called for Strahan to even be fired for his “disrespectful” and “disgraceful” actions.
Perhaps people were simply looking for reasons to lash out, and settled on Strahan. As recent events have made clear, the world seems to have gone mad over the past decade. Part of that seems to be an outrage culture where people living their lives — or standing solemnly during a song — are treated as personal attacks.
What does Michael Strahan to say about all of this?
With extraordinary patience that many in his position might not exercise, Michael took to Instagram late Tuesday night to address fans and critics alike.
Strahan explained that the coverage had “spilled over” to such a degree that he wanted to discuss it.
As for standing respectfully with his hands not reenacting a ritual of patriotism, he was not staging some sort of protest. Michael explained that he felt “caught up in the moment” and did not initially realize that his hand was out of place.
“I have nothing to protest, I have no statement to be made,” Michael emphasized during the video.
“The only statement that should be made that I want to make is I love the military. I’ve always loved the military, and I will always love the military,” he noted. He made as much clear in a Veteran’s Day Instagram post earlier in the week.
“I do so many programs to help veterans and soldiers,” Strahan added. “I grew up on a military base with a father who was a major in the army. My brother, my sister, my cousins, they all served in the military — I’m a military brat.”
‘I somewhat panic’
“And so the fact of somebody saying that, you know, I’m unpatriotic, couldn’t be any further from the truth,” he affirmed. As it turned out, he’d gotten caught up in the moment as the anthem began.
Michael Strahan explained his thinking in the moment: “I somewhat panic and I’m like, ‘Do I be the fool that puts his hand over his heart after or do I just stand here with my hand in front of me respectfully?’”
He then acknowledged: “Which, that’s what I did, that’s what happened.” In other words, he has a very relatable level of anxiety and overthinking.