High school cheerleaders' 9/11 tribute called 'tasteless' for including news audio of the attack (VIDEO)

A Texas high school cheerleading squad's 9/11 tribute performance has created quite a stir after footage of the routine went viral.

The Lumberton High School cheerleading squad's routine was posted on the Internet on the 14th anniversary of the September 11 attacks as a show of respect for those who lost their lives.

And while some viewers have taken it in the spirit it was intended, according to BuzzFeed, others have called the performance — viewed more than 20 million times — "tasteless" and "cringeworthy." 

Omg, that 9/11 cheerleader video has to be the most cringeworthy thing I've seen in a long time. Get a clue.

— Jess Desserts (@thejessdesserts) September 13, 2015

The cheerleaders are seen performing their routine to God Bless the USA as audio from the first news reports of the attacks on that fateful day is played in the background.

The cheer also features audio of President Bush, speaking after the two hijacked passenger planes crashed into two World Trade Center towers in New York and another jet struck the Pentagon and a fourth crashed in a Pennsylvania field the same morning.

In the video, the perky cheerleaders can be seen tumbling, flipping and throwing each other into the air before unfurling a US flag and spelling out the word 'USA' with tinsel.

Lumberton's cheerleading squads have performed a tribute routine every year since 2002 and take it "very seriously," their coach, Laura Sheffield said.