How Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl Halftime Show LSPR Interpreter Made History

The Super Bowl LX halftime show proved to be more than just a musical milestone. It was also a big win for Deaf advocacy. Although Bad Bunny made history as the first predominantly Spanish-language headliner, the real breakthrough came when a Puerto Rican Sign Language (LSPR) interpreter provided access to the deaf and hard-of-hearing community, a move that directly honors the linguistic rights of the Puerto Rican Deaf community.

For years, the standard for accessibility at major events has been American Sign Language (ASL). However, for the 220,000 deaf or hard-of-hearing residents of Puerto Rico, ASL isn’t always used.

LSPR evolved from ASL in the early 1900s, but has developed its own unique pacing, slang, and cultural nuances that make it a separate language. Despite its importance to the Puerto Rican community, linguistic experts have categorized LSPR as an endangered language. Advocacy for its use is a fight for the survival of a specific cultural heritage, and watching it being performed during the Super Bowl only highlights the importance of maintaining the language.

 Celimar Rivera Cosme was the LSPR interpreter who provided services during the Super Bowl halftime show. Cosme is a native of Puerto Rico. She is hard of hearing and was hired directly by the NFL to interpret Bad Bunny’s set.

However, that doesn’t mean she’s unfamiliar with the superstar. She began working with him in 2022 after an Instagram video she made went viral. According to San Francisco PBS member station KQED, she begged him to include an LSPR interpreter at his shows, and he hired her a week after she posted the video.

According to a 2022 report, approximately seven percent of Puerto Rico’s residents identify as either deaf or hard-of-hearing. This would account for approximately 220,000 people in their overall population of 3.2 million.

“We’ve been fighting not to lose our language, but to keep it,” Cosme told The New York Times in an interview ahead of her performance. “The Super Bowl will be an excellent platform for us to use our language.”

She was also thankful for her opportunity to showcase Puerto Rico’s culture and language during the Super Bowl, one of the most-watched sports events of the year.

“The stakes here are to show that we are friendly people, and also how we dance, our lyrics, our slang,” she told the Times. “Puerto Rico… we might be a small island, but people here have a huge, huge heart.”

In addition, Cosme told KQED that she was “excited” to perform, knowing it would make the people of Puerto Rico “happy” to see their language showcased in such a public way.

“I’m so excited,” she said. “And the deaf people of Puerto Rico are happy that the Super Bowl will be accessible to them in their own sign language.”

She went on to say, “I know I’m going to be the one standing up there, but it’s the deaf community of my island that’s going to shine.”