By now, Beyoncé’s Super Bowl halftime ode to the Black Panthers has entered the national consciousness. We all know what she was driving at. She was channeling the meme of the “black lives matter” movement. But why use the symbolism of the Black Panthers? After all, the group has long and sordid history of violence. Why raise such a divisive symbol of racial militancy and separatism to the pinnacle of a Super Bowl halftime show? The answer is quite simple: because it shocks—or at least it’s intended to shock.