J. Lo's halftime show was a gift to America -- wrapped in red, white and blue

SAN DIEGO -- The coronation is complete: Mega-performer Jennifer Lopez is the reigning Queen of America.

Correction. Should I have broadened that and said "Queen of the Americas"? This would include Mexico, Central and South America, maybe even the Caribbean.

What I mean is that the Bronx-raised "Jenny from the block" -- who showed during Sunday's Super Bowl halftime show that she comes to hot-button issues like identity, nationality, immigration and ethnicity on her own terms -- is the quintessential American.

It's not because, at one point during the show, Lopez draped herself in a feathered coat that had the red, white and blue American flag on one side, and the red, white and blue Puerto Rican flag of her ancestors on the other.

Nor is it because, while this was happening, Lopez's 11-year-old daughter, Emme Maribel, took the stage and started singing a few bars of Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the USA."

It's not because Lopez -- who shouted "Latinos" at the start of her set -- put on, together with fellow pop star Shakira, a celebration of multiculturalism in 21st-century America that also paid respects to Shakira's Lebanese and Colombian heritage.

It's not because Lopez broke new ground. This marked the first time in Super Bowl history that two Latinas headlined the halftime show.

What's this? Hollywood studios, the New York book publishing industry and the Democratic presidential primary can't find any Latinos to showcase. And the National Football League found two.

Also, it's not because Lopez speaks her mind and isn't afraid to use her platform to register disgust for President Trump and his regressive policies toward Puerto Rico, Mexican immigrants and Central American refugees.

The show also featured Emme and other children in "cages" where the bars were made of light beams.

In November, when the news broke that she and Shakira would perform at the halftime show, Lopez -- who is also an actress, producer and entrepreneur -- told reporters it was "super important for two Latina women to be headlining the Super Bowl, especially right now in Trump's America."

That's all good. But that's not why Lopez is the poster girl for America.

Rather, it's because she came from nothing, and she worked hard to achieve the American dream. Now she has a lot of everything. When yours is a household name and you're worth an estimated $400 million, you can do what you want and not care a whit what anyone thinks about it.

Besides, as an American, you can bet that -- as she hears from those who considered her performance too risqué -- she gets the joke. She sees through us, because she's one of us.

Imagine a nation of people who tolerate the breaking apart of families and caging of toddlers but who clutch their pearls at the sight of an age-defying 50-year-old pop star pole dancing because they consider it obscene.

Imagine a country of television viewers who tune in to overly sexualized shows like ABC's "The Bachelor," where young girls in bikinis look for Prince Charming in a hot tub, suddenly turning prudish at the sight of scantily clad Latina singers shaking their hips.

Are supporters of a president who bragged about grabbing women in places they should not be grabbed and insulted a female journalist with an ugly comment seemingly about menstruation and called a Venezuelan beauty queen overweight really going to accuse the NFL of demeaning women?

I could go on with other examples of Trump disrespecting women, but there's a word limit on this column.

Unlike the president, Lopez wasn't born on third base and perfectly positioned to steal home. She had to get there on her own.

My favorite post halftime-show meme was a photo of J. Lo, after the performance, flying home alone aboard a private plane. She's staring out the window, obviously content with the night's gig and appearing not the least bit concerned that she may have made some conservative moms and dads in red states blush.

I confess. I've been slow to give J. Lo props over the years. She deserves respect for "killing it." She doesn't let others define, limit or control her. She's strong, stubborn and determined. Maybe even a little ornery. She works hard, doesn't play the victim, and just keeps pushing ahead. As for what you think of her, save it. She doesn't care.

That's gangster. And it's the American way.

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Ruben Navarrette's email address is ruben@rubennavarrette.com. His daily podcast, "Navarrette Nation," is available through every podcast app.