FEATURE: If You Go Down (I’m Goin’ Down Too): The Artists Supporting Trans Rights and Speaking Out Against Anti-L.G.B.T.Q.+ and Drag Laws

FEATURE:

 

 

If You Go Down (I’m Goin’ Down Too)

PHOTO CREDIT: Greta Hoffman via Pexels

The Artists Supporting Trans Rights and Speaking Out Against Anti-L.G.B.T.Q.+ and Drag Laws

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IT shouldn’t be a conversation…

 PHOTO CREDIT: Barcelos_fotos via Pexels

that we need to have in 2023. The issue around the trans community and their rights has been a source of division online. Whereas they should have equal rights and be admired and huge respected, there has been a lot of hate. A lot of conversation in the U.S. at the moment. Here in the U.K., there are prominent figures (including J.K. Rowling and Graham Linehan) who hold hate and ignorance towards the trans community. The L.G.B.T.Q.+ and drag communities have also been coming under fire. I will come to that soon. I know there are artists in the U.K. who are fighting back against those who attack and demonise these communities, but there is particular activation and engagement in the U.S. A little bit of modern context, before I briefly nod back. Late last year, this article explained how Tennessee was looking to pass the first anti-L.G.B.T.Q.+ law:

“Just one day after the midterm elections in the United States, lawmakers in Tennessee filed bills to ban gender-affirming health care for children in next year’s state legislative session.

The bill would prohibit medical providers from prescribing puberty blockers, which delay puberty to allow children who are transgender or grappling with their gender to determine their gender identity. The bill would also prohibit gender-affirming hormones and surgery. While gender-affirming surgeries for children are not recommended under prevailing standards of care and are exceptionally rare, interventions to delay puberty are more common and are critically important for the mental and physical health of many transgender people. The American Medical Association and other leading professional groups have strongly opposed restrictions on gender-affirming care.

The Tennessee legislature has been particularly hostile to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) young people. In 2021, it enacted laws requiring parental notification and opt-outs when schools use LGBT-inclusive curricula and preventing transgender children from participating in sports alongside their peers. It previously banned pre-pubertal hormonal interventions for children, puzzling critics who pointed out that this is not a standard element of gender-affirming care. The state has also failed to take positive steps to protect LGBT children, and it does not have inclusive antidiscrimination laws or antibullying laws to defend LGBT children’s rights.

Tennessee’s bill is the first anti-LGBT bill filed for state legislative sessions in 2023 following the midterm elections”.

 IN THIS PHOTO: Participants attend the Nashville Pride parade in June last year, but new legislation has put a question mark over future events/PHOTO CREDIT: Mickey Bernal/Getty Images

It seems like attacks on the drag and L.G.B.T.Q.+ communities are continuing unabated this year. There is a wave of anti-drag bills sweeping the U.S. right now. NPR wrote how that this is taken straight from history’s playbooks. Hardly a new occurrence, there has been subjugation against drag performance for years now. Those scared that drag performance are damaging to children and are morally wrong are gaining a lot of ground in the U.S. Where some say the bills might not go anywhere and are vague, others argue that this is yet another attack against the L.G.B.T.Q.+ community:

“It turns out that even 150 years ago, legislators wanted to police gender expression in public spaces.

Who are they? LGBTQ Tennesseans. Advocates worry that recently-passed legislation restricting drag performances in public spaces in Tennessee could be used to discriminate against them, and fuel the slew of similar laws being proposed in other states.

  • The bill that passed in Tennessee last week restricts "adult cabaret performances" in public or in the presence of children, and bans them from occurring within 1,000 feet of schools, public parks, or places of worship.

  • This was passed alongside separate legislation that bans transgender minors in Tennessee from receiving gender-affirming care like puberty blockers, hormones, and surgery.

  • As of a month ago, at least 9 GOP-led state legislatures were pushing similar anti-drag bills.

  • Those found violating the anti-drag law face misdemeanor charges in the first instance, punishable by a fine up to $2,500 and/or up to a year in jail. Those found for subsequent violations face a felony charge, punishable by up to six years in jail.

What's the big deal?

  • Laws restricting gender expression in public and in private have been around in the U.S. for more than 100 years, with one in New York only just being repealed in 2021.

  • Critics say the Tennessee bill is so constitutionally vague there is little clarity about what falls under the jurisdiction of the ban, making business owners, performers and others uncertain of what could come next.

  • Others say the laws will be used to target queer Tennesseans everywhere: "It's ... this subtle and sinister way to further criminalize just being trans," ACLU of Tennessee's Henry Seaton told NPR earlier this month.

  • Tennessee Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson, the drafter of the state's drag show bill, told NPR in a statement, "Just as current law prohibits strip clubs from admitting children, this legislation would also prohibit sexually suggestive drag shows from being performed on public property, or on any non-age-restricted private property where a minor could be present”.

 IN THIS PHOTO: Miley Cyrus/PHOTO CREDIT: Sony Music via British Vogue

Whilst there is a lot of outrage and protest across all sectors and the arts, musicians have always been engaged and keen to speak out. In 2017, Billboard highlighted eight artists who spoke out for trans rights. This followed then-President Donald Trump's announcement that the U.S. military would ban transgender individuals from service from 26th July, 2017 - which sent a furore through the L.G.B.T.Q.+ community:

“Tegan & Sara

The tragic massacre of 49 people at Orlando gay club Pulse last June prompted many artists to speak out — among them, indie-folk sisterly duo Tegan and Sara. The singers, who are both openly gay, took a moment backstage at the iHeartRadio MuchMusic Video Awards that month to explain that legalizing gay marriage is merely the beginning of the LGBT rights battle.

“We have a huge civil-rights movement happening right now with transgender people in America, and I think the worst thing that could happen to our community is we could become apathetic and we could think that everything has changed — everything has not changed,” Tegan said. “We are still a minority group and a lot of people still hate us, and that was proven last weekend.”

Miley Cyrus

Miley Cyrus is a known LGBTQ ally, whether through her frequent posts on social media speaking out for trans rights or her music’s overarching message of self-love and personal truth. But her commitment to supporting the transgender community is perhaps most concrete in her work with the Happy Hippie Foundation, a nonprofit the “Malibu” singer launched in 2015 with the joint goals of helping homeless and LGBTQ youth. For one of the foundation’s first campaigns, Cyrus partnered with Instagram to create “InstaPride,” a two-week photo shoot series (shot by Miley herself) to highlight and celebrate transgender individuals.

Beyoncé

Just after performing in Raleigh, North Carolina, as part of her Formation World Tour last summer, Beyoncé posted a note on her website condemning the state’s controversial HB2 law, a bill that would restrict transgender individuals’ public restroom use. The bill presented a debacle for many artists scheduled to perform in the state — while Bruce Springsteen, Ringo Starr and others opted to cancel their North Carolina concerts in response, Bey used her Raleigh concert to bring attention to organizations working to promote trans rights.

“We think it is important for us to bring attention to those who are committed to being good and carrying on the message of equality in this core of controversy,” the note says, directing readers to Equality NC, “among the many organizations doing the good work to get this bill overturned.”

Demi Lovato

Performing her hit “Cool for the Summer” at the Billboard Music Awards in 2016, Demi Lovato let her attire do the talking. Lovato donned a mesh shirt adorned with an all-inclusive, gender-neutral bathroom symbol, a subtle stand against trans-discriminatory “bathroom bills.” Earlier that summer, Lovato canceled the North Carolina stops of her tour with Nick Jonas as a response to the state’s HB2 law. An Instagram post explained her decision, telling her fans, “We trust that you will stand united with us against this hateful law”.

Let’s come back to the here and now. There is a lot of suppression aimed at the L.G.B.T.Q.+ community., Trans rights are being blocked and attacked. The drag community is once more under fire and being seen as an evil. Forbes highlighted how Country artists are taking sides when it comes to trans and drag rights. Whereas the likes of Kid Rock, Travis Tritt and Ted Nugent spoke out against Bud Light partnering with transgender social media influencer Dylan Mulvaney. They have vowed that Anheuser-Busch products will be banned from their tours. Other artists like Shainia Twain, Kelsea Ballerini and Orville Peck have voiced their support and love of the trans and drag communities. Tennessee issued a ban on public drag shows recently. It has sparked a lot of debate at a time when we should be supporting drag shows and not stigmatising the L.G.B.T.Q.+ community:

“TOPLINE

Country musicians have generated significant social media attention in recent weeks for their comments—positive and negative—on transgender rights and drag performances following a slew of bills in Tennessee and other Southern states targeting the LGBTQ community, and Bud Light’s partnership with a trans TikTok star.

KEY FACTS

Dylan Mulvaney, a transgender TikTok star, has been the target of conservative outrage over the past week after she modeled women’s sportswear for Nike and partnered with Bud Light, prompting high-profile musicians, athletes and media commentators to slam the companies as “woke” and attack Mulvaney.

Bills targeting transgender people and drag performers have flooded state legislatures this year, most often targeting various gender-affirming care for minors and aiming to prevent drag artists from performing in public or where minors could be present, the latter often based on false claims that these events sexualize children.

IN THIS PHOTO: Dylan Mulvaney/PHOTO CREDIT: Getty Images

CHIEF CRITICS

Kid Rock went viral for a video he posted of himself shooting Bud Light cans and yelling profanities about the company and its owner Anheuser-Busch. His video has been liked more than 212,000 times and retweeted more than 44,000 times. Country star Travis Tritt announced he would no longer carry Anheuser-Busch products in his tour hospitality rider last week and blasted Jack Daniels for a years-old campaign that featured drag performers. Singer John Rich, one-half of country duo Big & Rich, asked his 900,000 Twitter followers last week what beer brand he should replace Bud Light with at his Redneck Riviera bar in Nashville, and separately tweeted a false claim that drag artists “dirty dance” for children.

CONTRA

Country singer Zach Bryan defended Mulvaney’s Bud Light partnership to his 400,000 Twitter followers on Saturday, stating “insulting transgender people is completely wrong,” while clarifying he means no disrespect to Tritt (and that he’d drink enough Jack Daniels for the both of them). Some notable country stars also came out in support of drag artists: Reba McEntire said she was “disappointed” in a Tennessee law (which was temporarily blocked by a judge) that would restrict drag performances in public spaces or where minors are present in a March interview, urging attention for more pressing issues like homelessness. At the CMT Music Awards on April 2, co-host and country star Kelsea Ballerini performed her “If You Go Down (I’m Goin’ Down Too)” with four performers from RuPaul’s Drag Race, which many interpreted as a rebuke of anti-drag bills (including bills in Texas that would bar drag artists from performing where minors are present).

I have a couple of articles to bring in before finishing off. It seems that Tennessee is particularly anti-drag and trans/L.G.B.T.Q.+ rights. In the music community, there are some big names calling for change and going after those who are determined to alienate and dehumanise those that they feel do not fit in; those who seem amoral or are setting a bad example. Rolling Stone reported on musicians who are rallying against ridiculous and vile bills in the U.S. Let’s hope that there are support concerts and even more love from artists:

“LIZZO AND MADONNA have both taken stances in calling out the recent rash of anti-LGBTQ bills like the Tennessee drag ban and laws aimed at trans healthcare.

Earlier this month, Lizzo shared a series of tweets about getting to the root of the hate. “I’ve never heard a person say why they’re racist… Or fatphobic.. I’ve never heard a reason why someone is transphobic.. I think if we knew ‘why’ these people felt this way there would way less support for these ideals. Because the ‘why’ is more insidious than we realize,” she wrote before adding later: “Don’t get it twisted— I don’t care why people are bigoted. That’s a waste of my imagination. I feel like there’s a lot of complicit silence and apathetic participation going on that wouldn’t fly if people knew more.”

In the same vein, Madonna won’t allow the hate spiel to alienate her from her audience in Tennessee. The singer recently added a Nashville stop to her tour schedule, with proceeds from the show benefiting trans-rights organizations.

“The oppression of the LGBTQ+ is not only unacceptable and inhumane; it’s creating an unsafe environment; it makes America a dangerous place for our most vulnerable citizens, especially trans women of color,” Madonna said in a statement. “Also, these so-called laws to protect our children are unfounded and pathetic. Anyone with half a brain knows not to fuck with a drag queen. Bob and I will see you from the stage in Nashville where we will celebrate the beauty that is the queer community.”

The B-52’s also took aim at the laws targeting trans healthcare. “We, The B-52’s, are deeply concerned about the numerous new bills that promote transphobia and discrimination against transgender individuals and drag artists, which have been introduced in the United States,” the band wrote on Twitter Wednesday.

“We strongly denounce these bills and stand in solidarity with our LGBTQ+ community. It is unacceptable that in the 21st century, we are witnessing such blatant attempts to undermine the rights of individuals based on their gender identity and sexual orientation. These bills not only violate the fundamental human rights of the affected individuals but also perpetuate a toxic culture of hate and intolerance that has no place in our society.”

Nashville’s own Hayley Williams of Paramore previously wrote of the Tennessee laws aimed at the LGBTQ+ community, “Once again our state has passed two regressive and unfathomably harmful bills. We stand in solidarity with our LGBTQIA+ family and local LGBTQIA+ orgs in this fight, not only for inclusion for our friends and family in the queer community, but for radical acceptance and empowerment for each of them. Drag is not a crime. Gender-affirming healthcare for all, including our youth, is a necessity”.

 IN THIS PHOTO: Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker of boygenius perform during Coachella/PHOTO CREDIT: Getty Images for Coachella

It does not seem like there is chance of reform or common sense in states around the U.S. that look to castigate L.G.B.T.Q.+ people. From anti-trans rhetoric to anti-drag bills and an assault on people who should be embraced, supported, and shown nothing but respect and love, the music world is showing their support and anger. Rolling Stone reacted to boygenius’ Coachella set from the weekend, where the super-trio had their say about what is happening in some U.S. states. From Florida’s restriction of transgender care for minors to Missouri spreading that ban to adults too, boygenius had something to say on the matter:

“Boygenius didn’t hold back at their first “proper” show in five years. The supergroup — made up of Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker — took the stage at Coachella on Saturday night and immediately charmed the crowd by coming out to “The Boys Are Back in Town,” something that’s become an ongoing joke since they announced they were going on tour.

They were playful throughout the performance, tackling each other during “Salt in the Wound” and cracking jokes. However, their set was also a moment to take a stand: Dacus took a few seconds after introducing the band to speak up for trans rights. “I want to say before we keep going, I don’t know if you’ve been checking the news and seeing the tomfoolery that’s going on in Florida, Missouri, and so many other places, but trans lives matter, trans kids matter,” she said. “We’re going to fight it, and we’re going to win”.

It is great that artists are taking a stand and speaking out. I have said before how it is a shame that more artists do not use their time on stage to protest against issued and discrimination. Some do, but I feel that others hold back. To be fair, as is the case when it comes to gender equality and other issues, it is mainly women standing up. I do not want to make this about gender division, but it would be nice to see more male artists join the likes of boygenius, The Linda Lindas, Shania Twain and the many others who have shown support for drag acts and the L.G.B.T.Q.+ community. A lot of the negativity and hate has come from male artists, so some balance and outcry from male artists would be encouraging. Let’s hope that many more artists take a stand against the appalling bands and laws being passed across the U.S. For a nation that stands for freedom and democracy, a lot is being done to…

GO against that.

Sam Liddicott