Commentary, Editorial, Exclusive, Taylor Swift

The Silence Breaks Again: Taylor gets political

Today is never too late to be brand new, Taylor Nation.

Where do we begin here… It’s 2018 and Taylor Swift just got political on instagram. The Blonde With The Sparkly Guitar decided to finally talk about the issues that matter most to her, because although she states that she might not agree with everything any of the candidates stand for, she can’t vote for the candidate that is opposed to her own personal values. Although I stated that we’d only get political once, Taylor has put the subject on the table again. This is happening.

This is going to be a good thing and a bad thing. She’s going to be criticized for being silent for so many years, although she has already been vocal about a few of these issues. I expect there will be a lot of vitriol sent her way so I am glad that the US Leg of the reputation Tour is over. That timing can’t be accidental. I know she’ll get criticized for that too, but I’m actually thankful for it. So, what did she say that was so terrible again?

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I’m writing this post about the upcoming midterm elections on November 6th, in which I’ll be voting in the state of Tennessee. In the past I’ve been reluctant to publicly voice my political opinions, but due to several events in my life and in the world in the past two years, I feel very differently about that now. I always have and always will cast my vote based on which candidate will protect and fight for the human rights I believe we all deserve in this country. I believe in the fight for LGBTQ rights, and that any form of discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender is WRONG. I believe that the systemic racism we still see in this country towards people of color is terrifying, sickening and prevalent. I cannot vote for someone who will not be willing to fight for dignity for ALL Americans, no matter their skin color, gender or who they love. Running for Senate in the state of Tennessee is a woman named Marsha Blackburn. As much as I have in the past and would like to continue voting for women in office, I cannot support Marsha Blackburn. Her voting record in Congress appalls and terrifies me. She voted against equal pay for women. She voted against the Reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, which attempts to protect women from domestic violence, stalking, and date rape. She believes businesses have a right to refuse service to gay couples. She also believes they should not have the right to marry. These are not MY Tennessee values. I will be voting for Phil Bredesen for Senate and Jim Cooper for House of Representatives. Please, please educate yourself on the candidates running in your state and vote based on who most closely represents your values. For a lot of us, we may never find a candidate or party with whom we agree 100% on every issue, but we have to vote anyway. So many intelligent, thoughtful, self-possessed people have turned 18 in the past two years and now have the right and privilege to make their vote count. But first you need to register, which is quick and easy to do. October 9th is the LAST DAY to register to vote in the state of TN. Go to vote.org and you can find all the info. Happy Voting! 🗳😃🌈

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In a single post, Taylor stated her support for women in office (just not this woman in particular), her belief that systemic racism exist, her support for LGBTQ rights and the fact that discrimination against sexual orientation is wrong. Please note that although she opposes the Republican candidate, her endorsement for the Democratic one was not fully sparkling. “For a lot of us,” she writes. “We may never find a candidate or party with whom we agree 100% on every issue, but we have to vote anyway.”

That is the sentiment that I think I share most of all. Even here in Canada, I don’t always find the best candidate to vote for and often have to align with the one that at least doesn’t outright wants to deny rights to people because they come from another country, belong to a different race, have a different belief system or love who they want to love. The day will come where these subjects will be universally accepted and not issues for political divisiveness, but before than can happen we will have to have days like these.

Taylor spoke her mind about something she believed in, and it is a political topic because of her own values. Values that I admire as well and I don’t really consider part of politics until someone decides that they’re going to oppose them for some reason. It’s not much of a choice for me then. I can’t vote against myself. Fortunately we do get more than one party, but even then sometimes all their candidates are weak and you still have to vote for the one that will not make you live like a second class citizen.

She’ll get a lot of flak for this. I can imagine people unfollowing her and burning CDs or whatever. At least we can bury all the crazy theories about nazis now. Don’t get me started on why we have to worry about nazis in this day and age.

The Sparkly Dressed is up for Artist of the Year, Tour of the Year, Favorite Female Artist Pop/Rock and Favorite Album Pop/Rock for the American Music Awards. The show is live on ABC on Tuesday, October 9th. The most important thing you need to know is that she is attending and performing as the opening act. She’s actually supposed to unveil a live performance of “I Did Something Bad” which is a song I’d really like mainstream to get stuck in their heads just so they know Taylor can still make bops.

The Enchantress is also up for three People’s Choice Awards with Female Artist of the Year, Concert Tour of the Year and Social Celebrity of the Year. The show airs Sunday, November 11th.

Coming up next in the Calendar:

  • October 9: The American Music Awards live on ABC. Taylor Swift is nominated for Artist of the Year, Tour of the Year, Favorite Female Artist Pop/Rock and Favorite Album Pop/Rock.
  • October 19: Optus Stadium. Perth, Australia.
  • October 26: Etihad Stadium. Melbourne, Australia.

(Sources: Instagram. Featured photo credit: Taylor Swift via Instagram)

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A. Leon

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