Bad Bunny Super Bowl show ignites Puerto Rican debate, but most support statehood

The announcement of Bad Bunny headlining the Super Bowl halftime show has reignited a national debate about what it means to be American — and who belongs on the nation’s largest stage. Although his global fame and residency in Puerto Rico have drawn attention to the island, it is a mistake to conflate controversies surrounding the artist with how Americans view the 3.2 million U.S. citizens who call Puerto Rico home. 

Some have even gone as far to argue that backlash against Bad Bunny’s performance proves Puerto Ricans are incompatible with the rest of the U.S. That logic is not only absurd but also a cynical attempt to twist a pop culture debate into an argument for Puerto Rican independence. This despite the fact that majority of the island’s voters and a majority of the American public support Puerto Rican statehood.

Bad Bunny’s meteoric rise in global culture has been fueled by his willingness to provoke, shock and polarize. What he calls “authenticity” is a performance style built for the attention economy — where controversy is currency and spectacle drives engagement. His fame has been propelled by contradictions: hypersexualized and often misogynistic lyrics paired with declarations of feminist solidarity; fluid explorations of gender identity and crossdressing that challenge norms; and critiques of U.S. immigration enforcement and local Puerto Rican politics alike.

On the island, Bad Bunny has publicly condemned the government’s handling of the energy crisis, accused newcomers from the mainland of “displacing” locals and taken aim primarily at the pro-statehood party he personally opposes. Each of these stances carries risk — backlash, misinterpretation and outrage — but also reward: visibility, relevance and the ability to push his narrative.

Bad Bunny has the right to free speech — a right he has monetized brilliantly. But to interpret the criticism of his Super Bowl selection as evidence that Americans reject Puerto Ricans writ large is both misguided and offensive. The data simply don’t support that narrative. Although U.S. opinions about Puerto Rico’s political status are complex, the overwhelming trend is one of goodwill and a growing belief that Puerto Ricans deserve full equality within the union.

Recent polling underscores this point clearly. A 2024 YouGov survey found that 59 percent of Americans support Puerto Rico becoming a state if island voters choose that path, with only 16 percent opposed.

A 2025 national poll by Stetson University similarly showed that a majority of U.S. adults — 55 percent — selected Puerto Rico as their top choice for America’s next state. Gallup’s long-term tracking places support for Puerto Rican statehood in roughly the same range, showing durable bipartisan backing across several decades.

If popular culture controversies like Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl performance are misinterpreted as evidence of anti-Puerto Rican sentiment, it distracts from the real story: Americans overwhelmingly believe Puerto Ricans deserve equal treatment under the law. Congress should take note. Every credible national poll shows that the American public is ahead of Washington on this issue.

The voters on the island have repeatedly expressed their desire for statehood in local plebiscites and rejected independence, with the certified results of the latest vote yielding over 58 percent support for statehood. The voters on the mainland have expressed openness to welcoming Puerto Rico as the 51st state. The disconnect lies not between Puerto Rico and the rest of America but between public and political will.

The truth is, most Americans are not debating whether Puerto Ricans “belong.” After all, there are more Puerto Ricans living on the mainland — about 5.8 million — than the 3.2 million on the island. Although social media outrage may make it seem as though the country is divided over cultural flashpoints, the deeper data shows a quiet consensus: Puerto Ricans are Americans, and most Americans believe they deserve the same rights, representation and responsibilities as everyone else.

That should be the takeaway from this moment — not whether Bad Bunny’s performance is too political, too risqué or too Puerto Rican. Cultural debates will come and go. But the moral and constitutional question of Puerto Rico’s unresolved political status remains. This attention reveals a fundamental truth about America’s unfinished project: our union is still incomplete.

Congress should look past the noise of pop culture and see the opportunity this moment presents. Puerto Rico’s story is not one of division but of belonging — not of rejection but of recognition. The data are clear, the people have spoken, and the public is ready. Congress must act — so that the next time a Puerto Rican artist takes America’s biggest stage, no one questions whether he or she belongs.

George Laws Garcia is the executive director of the Puerto Rico Statehood Council. Previously, he served as the acting director of the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration.