La Familia brings students together to watch Super Bowl LX

La Familia, formerly known as La Unión Hispania, hosted a watch party on Feb. 8 in the Back Alley to watch the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots duke it out on Super Bowl Sunday.

A crowd of Augustana students gathered on comfy chairs around the projector in the Back Alley with virgin piña coladas and Mexican candy, watching the Seahawks dominate the field. Many, however, kept a close eye on the clock, counting down until the end of the second quarter. While a few were there for the love of the game, the majority of attendees were more interested in seeing the halftime show performed by Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny.

The idea to host a watch party came from the club’s president: junior Maite Martin Escamilla.

“I wanted to show support for the Puerto Rican community,” she said. “And I wanted to give people a chance to get to know our club, our board and our members.”

Although the big game was the primary activity, the club also set up a bracelet-making station, coloring sheets and a decorated backdrop with props for students to take pictures in front of. Those who could stand to miss watching sweaty athletes run the ball down the field played board games while they waited or talked in excited whispers about who Bad Bunny might bring out as a guest performer. Flags from different countries were strung along the walkway, highlighting the intersectionality of culture that the halftime show would soon lift to center stage.

According to Escamilla, the turnout was greater than she had expected, with over 150 students coming to the event.

“It was lovely,” Escamilla said. “Most people left after the halftime show was over, but I kind of figured that would happen.”

When the announcement came that Bad Bunny would be headlining the 2026 Super Bowl LX halftime show, there came a cacophony of both praise and criticism. Never before in Super Bowl history had the halftime show featured a Spanish-dominant performance, nor one by a Latin male solo artist. Naturally, many were anticipating the show.

“I liked it a lot,” Escamilla said. “It brought people together. It did its job. Even though some people weren’t able to understand it, you can see the symbols of Puerto Rican culture.”

Sophomore Francisco Paniagua echoed her sentiment.

“It was nice to see the representation of Latino culture,” he said. “Like how the show started with the farmers — I grew up in a region that, before industrialization, was mostly farming and fishing. So I was like, ‘I used to help my grandpa do that.’ It was a great thing to see.”

Sophomore Makenna Sloan said she had been watching the game at home but thought the halftime show would be better experienced amongst a group of people.

“It was a great time. Very fun, very high energy,” Sloan said. “Everybody was cheering, and some people were even singing along. It felt like a little community, and we were all celebrating that culture.”

Bad Bunny ended his set on America’s largest stage with a powerful statement about division within her borders. A message flashed behind him on the big screen, one of the only parts of his show that was in English: “The only thing more powerful than hate is love.” Applause broke out in the Back Alley when people noticed the words, and it didn’t stop even after the rapper exited the field.