Shortly before the 2016 election, I put together a list of US celebrities who had stayed silent about Donald Trump. This enraged conservatives, who tweeted various threats and insults at me for simply pointing out that celebrities have a moral obligation to use their platform to promote ethical participation in our democracy. And I stand by the idea that when the US president is a celebrity, then the political views of celebrities are important.
The shameful presidency of Donald Trump has mobilised a number of politically neutral people in the years since his election. Yet, some celebrities—like Taylor Swift—have remained silent.
In an interview with the New York Times, Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails called out the Taylor Swifts of the world for remaining silent about topics that immediately impact our democracy. As Reznor told the Times:
I was doing press with somebody in the mid-90s, and they made an argument that stayed with me: that I have influence, and that it’s my job to call out whatever needs to be called out, because there are people who feel the same way but need someone to articulate it. And I think about that today, because it seemed like it was a lot easier to just keep your mouth shut and let it go back then. You don’t hear a lot from the Taylor Swifts of the world, and top-tier, needle-moving cultural youth, because they are concerned about their brand, their demographic and their success and career and whatnot.
It's true, Swift has spent more energy throughout her entire career protecting her brand than making music. Though denouncing Trump is the ethically right thing to do, it could very well alienate a large chunk of her fanbase.
Reznor went on to point out why speaking out about politics is more important now than it was 20 years ago.
What Donald Trump is doing is concerning and infuriating—and it’s not the conservative agenda, it’s not a question of religious preference, it’s not a question of should government be big or small. I don’t have any problem with those topics. But the disregard for decency and truth and civility is what’s really disheartening. It feels like a country that celebrates stupidity is really taking it up a notch.
Yes, Taylor Swift isn't going to save us on her own by denouncing Trump, but doing something is always better than doing absolutely nothing.
Matt Miller is a Brooklyn-based culture/lifestyle writer and music critic whose work has appeared in Esquire, Forbes, The Denver Post, and documentaries.
