M.I.A.'s infamous middle finger at the half-time super bowl show, when she performed with Madonna, seems like it happened ages ago. There was a lot of controversy after the fact, but by now, more than a year later, you'd think that would have all subsided. Apparently, that's not the case.
M.I.A. made a lawsuit filed by the NFL public today, in hopes of getting them off her back. The NFL is attempting to sue the artist for $1.5 million, and make her issue a public apology, over that middle finger. The lawsuit was apparently filed back in March 2012, right after the incident happen, but nothing has been resolved thus far so M.I.A. and her lawyer, Howard King, went public with the ridiculousness of it all.
King states to the Hollywood Reporter, "She is going to go public with an explanation of how ridiculous it was for the NFL and its fans to devote such furor to this incident, while ignoring the genocide occurring in her home country and several other countries, topics she frequently speaks to. Of course, the NFL's claimed reputation for wholesomeness is hilarious…in light of the weekly felonies committed by its stars, the bounties placed by coaches on opposing players, the homophobic and racist comments uttered by its players, the complete disregard for the health of players and the premature deaths that have resulted from same, and the raping of public entities ready to sacrifice public funds to attract teams."
We'll update you once this lawsuit unfolds further.
[Update: M.I.A. Reacts To NFL Lawsuit]
Following the recent news, M.I.A. released a video statement today on Wikileaks, indicating to her followers that she's not backing down to the NFL. She stated the following:
“The NFL thing is completely ridiculous. It’s been making me laugh for a while, but now it’s so boring, I don’t even laugh anymore. Now they’re scapegoating me into figuring out the goal posts on what is offensive in America. Is my finger offensive or is an underage black girl with her legs wide open more offensive to the family audience?”
She also goes on to call the lawsuit a "massive waste of time and money" and cites the tactic as a “massive display of powerful corporation dick-shaking.” Does she have a point?
Check out her video statement below.
[Via]