Social media users thought the five-year-old boy recently detained by ICE made a cameo at the Super Bowl
Bad Bunny made history with his Super Bowl halftime show, which was predominantly in Spanish for the first time. The performance included tons of references and proud homages to Puerto Rican culture, plus a packed list of special guests and performers (Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin both helped him sing a few songs, while stars like Karol G and Cardi B appeared in the little pink house known as “la casita” onstage with him).
As fans kept a sharp eye out for every Easter egg they could find, many latched onto a particular moment where Bad Bunny handed his Grammy award to a little boy onstage. (This was seemingly a reference to the historic Album of the Year trophy Bad Bunny won last week.) On social media, people quickly began speculating that the little boy was Liam Ramos, the five-year-old who was detained by ICE on his walk home from school in Columbia Heights, Minnesota in January.
However, a rep for Bad Bunny confirmed the little boy was not Ramos. Other social media users were quick to uncover the identity of the little boy at the Super Bowl; a child model named Lincoln Fox posted a clip of the moment with the caption, “I’ll remember this day forever.”
Ramos and his dad Adrian Conejo Arias both had applied for asylum in the United States and still had open claims, according to reports. They were detained by ICE and sent to a facility; reports circulated that Ramos had been sick while in custody. He and his father were released on Feb. 1.
Bad Bunny has been outspoken about his feelings toward ICE. While accepting the Grammy for Best Musica Urbana Album last week, he started his speech by saying, ““Before I say, ‘Thank God,’ I’m going to say, ‘ICE out… We’re not savage. We’re not animals. We’re not aliens. We are humans and we are Americans.”
At the Super Bowl, he didn’t make direct references to ICE. However, toward the end of the performance, he shouted, “God bless America!” and then gave a shoutout to every country in Latin America.
