From the June 12, 2022, Twisted Sifter.
You've heard the "Star-Spangled Banner" countless times in your life. It was written in 1814 by Francis Scott Key as a poem after he witnessed the U.S. flag flying high and proud over Baltimore's Fort McHenry after a long night of bombardment in the War of 1812.
But, we only hear the first of three verses and some folks today have a real problem with one part of the third verse. Who was Key talking about when he wrote: "Their blood has washed out their foul footstep's pollution. No refuge could save the hireling and slave from terror of flight or the gloom of the grave."?
According to the Library of Congress, Key could have been talking about how the British recruited escaped slaves to fight Americans in the war and Key could have seen them as enemies just like British soldiers.
It should be noted that Key was a lawyer and later in life helped slaves fight for their freedom. (He also owned slaves.)
--Brock-Perry
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