M.I.A. Responds to NFL Lawsuit
M.I.A. has another "offensive gesture" for the NFL, one that may be all too familiar. Responding to the league's $1.5 million lawsuit against her for throwing up the middle finger during the Super Bowl XLVI halftime show, she once again flipped the bird, then called the NFL "completely ridiculous" for the legal filing.
"It's been making me laugh for a while, but now it's so boring. I don't even laugh anymore," the "Paper Planes" singer announced in a video recording posted online late Monday (Sept. 23).
She further made her point by using football as an analogy, before calling out the dancers with whom she shared the stage as Madonna's guest. "Now they're scapegoating me into figuring out the goal posts on what is offensive in America," M.I.A. accused. "Is my finger offensive or is an underage black girl with legs wide open more offensive to the family audience?"
The performers used for the show's cheerleader theme were 16-year-old girls Madonna picked from an Indianapolis high school, M.I.A said.
According to the Sri Lankan-born rapper/singer, the NFL just wants to make an example out of her. "It's a massive waste of time, a massive waste of money," she added. "It's a massive display of powerful corporation d---shaking. They want me on my knees and say 'sorry' so they can slap me on my wrist. And basically, say it's okay for me to promote being, you know, sexually exploited as a female than to display female empowerment through being punk rock."
The NFL accuses M.I.A. of breaching her performance contract with the gesture, which she followed up with the words "I don't give a s--t."
The league has not yet responded to her video.
BET.com is your #1 source for Black celebrity news, photos, exclusive videos and all the latest in the world of hip hop and R&B music.
Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.
(Photo: Christopher Polk/Getty Images)