U-S-A! (chant) - Post 9/11 Usage

Post 9/11 Usage

The 9/11 attacks found a revival in the chant during patriotic ceremonies at sporting events; the chant was also heard when U.S. President George W. Bush visited the ruins at the World Trade Center site in the week following the 2001 attacks. The chant at the ruins was started by North Hudson Firefighter Thomas Irving, who was there for clean-up along with many other first-responders. Crowds gathered outside of the White House on May 1, 2011 could be heard chanting U-S-A! after President Barack Obama announced that al-Qaeda co-founder Osama bin Laden had been killed by American forces in Pakistan. The cheer was also chanted that Sunday evening at the only MLB baseball game being held while the news was breaking between the Philadelphia Phillies and the New York Mets. At the 2011 WWE Extreme Rules event in Tampa, Florida on the same date when the crowds gathered at the White House, the arena erupted in U-S-A chants as the death of Osama bin Laden was announced by then-WWE Champion, John Cena.