1. It’s an official state dance in several US states.
2. Henry Ford endorsed it as a wholesome, “white” alternative to “immoral” jazz music and the wild dancing that went with it.
3. It was actually invented by…well, watch and see:
‘Course, square dancing isn’t racist in and of itself. But it was appropriated by racists in a racist effort to wage cultural warfare against racialized people. Maybe that’s why it’s not hip to be square.