Kacey Musgraves is facing backlash from some fans after she showed support for immigrant families during a birthday performance.

The Grammy-winning country singer celebrated her 38th birthday on Friday by marking the opening night of her Middle of Nowhere tour in Chicago. At one point during the performance, she paused the show and urged the audience to donate to the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights as her “birthday wish.”

“It’s a wonderful organization, and they help give aid — legal aid — and money to children whose parents have been deported unfairly,” Musgraves said on stage. “It’s not a political thing. It’s just, these kids need help.”

She continued: “They have no guidance and no way to get through this thing without their home base or their parents. So anyway, 50 cents, whatever the hell, I don't know, whatever you want to do, but that would mean a lot to me. If you don't want to, that's totally fine too.”

The plea was met with applause and cheers from her crowd at the United Center. However, once videos of the moment started circulating online, conservative political commentators were quick to unleash their wrath on the “Follow Your Arrow” singer.

top 99 comments

sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] [S] 121 points 2 months ago (3 children)

One fan countered in the comments of her latest post: “We love you Kacey! People upset and surprised she would support the Young Centre clearly know nothing about her: she's always been a progressive, and not quiet about it.”

This is not the first time that Musgraves has upset conservatives. She has spent her career backing progressive causes, from supporting immigrants to gun control and LGBTQ+ rights.

Her pick of charity also does not come out of nowhere: Musgraves has repeatedly championed the Young Center, a national nonprofit that advocates for children separated from their families. Earlier this year, she partnered with Depop to sell pieces from her music videos and her personal wardrobe to raise money for the organization.

  • source
  • hideshow 3 child comments
  • [–] 96 points 2 months ago (2 children)

    Reminds me when fascists / fascist enablers were surprised rage against the machine were left leaning

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
  • [–] 46 points 2 months ago (1 child)

    In my experience white Christians genuinely believe that everyone who looks like them also thinks like them.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • [–] 23 points 2 months ago

    That's because they live insular lives where they get no pushback. Of course they would think that when their entire lives they rarely meet people that shows them otherwise. The fact that in the US people are allowed to homeschool their children and isolate them from their peers means that will continue to be a fact.

  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 88 points 2 months ago (4 children)

    The "Protect the children" folk when the children aren't white:

  • source
  • hideshow 4 child comments
  • [–] 35 points 2 months ago (2 children)

    They've never been Pro-life, just Pro-Whites.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
  • [–] 4 points 2 months ago

    Sometimes I wonder if the "Protect the children" types even care about children at all, the last year and change has given me the impression they'd do some heinous shit if the right person told them to.

  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 174 points 2 months ago (19 children)

    "Otherizing" fellow human beings is like a basic tenant of facisim. As soon as you feel that all people deserve basic happiness the right will attack you.

  • source
  • hideshow 19 child comments
  • [–] 21 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (17 children)

    Humans are animals forced to fight for every scrap of dignity from a horde of fellow creatures with the bodies of men and the souls of insects. The idea that you have anything besides flesh and blood in common with the zombie MAGAts overrunning this planet is dangerously naive.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 17 child comments
  • [–] -1 points 2 months ago* (15 children)

    The idea that you have anything besides flesh and blood in common with the zombie MAGAts overrunning this planet is dangerously naive.

    This is exactly the kind of othering he was just fucking talking about! Like seriously, do you hear yourself? It's literally dehumanizing language. You can't fight bigotry by out-bigoting everyone else.

    Anyway, I don't want to see it in my communities, it's deeply unhelpful.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 15 child comments
  • [–] 4 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (13 children)

    Nazis are evil. I will die on this hill.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 13 child comments
  • [–] 1 point 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (12 children)

    I'm right there with you. However, even Nazis are human.

    In fact, especially Nazis are human; it takes a human to be that evil. But don't pretend they're anything less than typical, this is why you have to engage with them, you can't write them off worthless scum and pretend they don't exist or matter, there's too many of them for that. The only way to beat them is to absorb them back into reasonable society. It's a shitload of work, and you just have to keep at it until their ideologies are once again a fringe subculture.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 12 child comments
  • [–] 2 points 2 months ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (11 children)

    They’re human, sure, and all humans are animals. Of course, not all animals are people.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 11 child comments
  • [–] 0 points 1 month ago (8 children)

    This is the definition of dehumanization.

    Imo I can hold the tenets that fascists must be met with force as violence is the only thing that will stop them (the Keyser Söse theorem); but that doesn't stop me from considering them as human beings, who weren't born this way. It may be tactically correct to consider the reasons someone would turn to naziism and fight those as well.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 8 child comments
  • [–] 0 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (7 children)

    What part of “Nazis are human” is dehumanizing?

    I’m not sure what has to malfunction in the brain or soul of any animal (human or otherwise) to become a Nazi, but it robs them of personhood, which is why they’re dangerous. There are dolphins, elephants, and other animals that I’d consider akin to people, and some humans I wouldn’t.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 7 child comments
  • [–] 1 point 1 month ago (6 children)

    This part:

    not all humans are people

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 6 child comments
  • [–] 1 point 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (2 children)

    Your speciecist definition of “person” — whereby every human is automatically entitled to personhood (even Nazis), whereas every elephant or dog is denied personhood (even good ones) — seems grossly out of touch with normative and empirical reality.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
  • [–] 0 points 1 month ago (1 child)

    Why do you think i deny dogs and elephants personhood?

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • [–] 1 point 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

    Because what made you upset was the denial that “all humans are persons.” Since you had no problem with the claim that “not all animals are persons,” you must believe there’s something special about Homo sapiens.

    Here, look:

    • Is a a good dog a person? Yes.
    • What about a rabid dog? No.

    Likewise,

    • Is a good human a person? Yes.
    • What about a nazi? No.
    • What about a zombie? Also, no.

    But this conclusion is unacceptable to you. It’s almost as if the “species” matters. I am attempting to disabuse you of that belief.

  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 1 point 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (2 children)

    Personhood is not the right to moral consideration. That is a right of all sentient creatures. So what is it? Have you ever read anything about this before or are you just now discovering the concept?

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
  • [–] -1 points 1 month ago (1 child)

    Dehumanization is the process, practice, or act of denying full humanity in others,^[1]^ along with the cruelty and suffering that accompany it.^[2][3][4]^ It involves perceiving individuals or groups as lacking essential human qualities, such as secondary emotions and mental capacities, thereby placing them outside the bounds of moral concern.^[1]^ In this definition, any act or thought that regards a person as either "other than" or "less than" human constitutes dehumanization.^[5][6]^

    In his report on the suppression of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, Jürgen Stroop described Jews resisting deportation to Nazi camps as "bandits".

    Lynndie England pulling a leash attached to the neck of a prisoner in Abu Ghraib prison, who is forced to crawl on the floor, while Megan Ambuhl watches, 2003.

    Dehumanization can be overt or subtle,^[7]^ and typically manifests in two primary forms: animalistic dehumanization, which denies uniquely human traits like civility, culture, or rationality and likens others to animals;^[3]^ and mechanistic dehumanization, which denies traits of human nature such as warmth, emotion, and individuality, portraying others as objects or machines.^[3]^

    It has historically facilitated a broad range of harms, from discrimination and social exclusion to slavery,^[1]^ colonization,^[8]^ as well as other crimes against humanity,^[1]^ and is recognized as a significant form of incitement to genocide.^[9]^

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • [–] 2 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

    Dehumanization is a concern when some humans believe that moral consideration is grounded in humanity. It is not. Every sentient creature is worthy of moral consideration, even nazis.

    If you are one of these humans who believe that your species (as opposed to your sentience) grants you inalienable rights, then yes, I can see why dehumanization would concern you.

  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 0 points 1 month ago (1 child)

    And it sounds like you're one of them. But here I am engaging with you. Trying to remind you that you can be better, that you can be the bigger person, that you have a responsibility to be change you want to see.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • [–] 0 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

    Personhood is the instantiation of certain transcendental values. Many (if not most) humans in our 200k year history have not been people capable of understanding important things or acting in moral ways. So what? Bears aren’t people either and it doesn’t stop me from being nice to them. Pretending otherwise out of some misplaced sense of inclusivity doesn’t make me a “better” person, as you said — it makes me wrong.

    ——

    By the way, the argument you’re making is a speciesist one, as if all Homo sapiens share a special trait that other animals don’t and denying this fact is “dehumanizing,” whatever that means.

    This is incorrect. All animals, including humans, fall somewhere on a spectrum: for kindness, for intelligence, for their ability to love, etc. Some combination of these traits is called “personhood” and grants you special responsibilities and considerations — for example, my willingness to take your ethical opinions seriously, as I’m doing now, for you.

  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 85 points 2 months ago (2 children)

    If she's pissing off conservatives, she's doing the right thing.

  • source
  • hideshow 2 child comments
  • [–] 74 points 2 months ago (6 children)

    Those people were never ever her fans and were certainly not at her concert.

    It's not a backlash because those people weren't listening to her to begin with. They just heard she was being kind and decided to act like she suddenly did something terrible. She's been doing this from the start, nothing changed.

    Her lyrics are so unique and entertaining. She feels like the first young contemporary female artist to not constantly write about breakups.

  • source
  • hideshow 6 child comments
  • [–] 24 points 2 months ago (3 children)

    Racists think they own that genre.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 3 child comments
  • [–] 22 points 2 months ago* (1 child)

    Which is funny because it was created by black field workers and poor immigrants from Europe. The banjo is an African instrument.

    Rich white people can't help but steal others culture and call it their own.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • [–] 59 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (2 children)

    ...once videos of the moment started circulating online, conservative political commentators were quick to unleash their wrath...

    It's important to remember that some pretty significant fraction of these "commentators" are really shills, robots, and/or other cyber-turfing actors. They're propagandists, they sow culture war outrage on purpose, they don't really believe in anything.

  • source
  • hideshow 2 child comments
  • [–] 9 points 2 months ago

    💯. I really wish people would check video histories of crap they watch.

    If someone is just a 24/7 outrage machine, it should be a pretty obvious clue they're not to be taken seriously, no matter what perspective they're coming from. It's just a toxic channel.

    I've seen lots of game review channels just be "X is the WORST" and "TOTAL GARBAGE" for literally anything. It's such an obvious ragebait scheme.

  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 114 points 2 months ago (11 children)

    breaking: conservative fans recoil in horror over "basic human decency" and "not being an asshole"

  • source
  • hideshow 11 child comments
  • [–] 33 points 2 months ago (8 children)

    They strongly argue that empathy will be the undoing of society. It’s a pretty common thing in conservative echo chambers. They’re about targeting vulnerable to maintain their status as an in-group, and are totally absorbed in their self-interest, even though most of them will never be part of the Epstein class.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 8 child comments
  • [–] 10 points 2 months ago (2 children)

    That can backfire when the ones that need empathy are them.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
  • [–] 9 points 2 months ago (2 children)

    Empathy is arguably the thing that separates humans from the rest of the animal kingdom

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
  • [–] 6 points 2 months ago

    Nothing terrifies the wealthy like facing the consequences of how shitty they've made other people's lives.

    So when your life gets bad enough, they give you someone else to hate.

    They think you're stupid in addition to being exploitable.

  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 56 points 2 months ago (3 children)

    Conservatives: we’re Christian and love everyone. Except those fucking immigrants.

  • source
  • hideshow 3 child comments
  • [–] 4 points 2 months ago

    Are you seriously gonna come in here and pretend that Jesus didn’t say “fuck immigrants”? Cause that’s the message they remember. “In fact,” he said, “anyone you don’t like, too.” It’s right there in the bible. Look it up.

  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 41 points 2 months ago

    Wait. You mean to say when she said something reasonable in real life, people supported it? And when it went online, bad faith actors used it as target practice? Say it ain't so.

  • source
  • [–] 39 points 2 months ago (3 children)

    She has been progressive for years, and I love to see it. A lot of the "outlaw country" genre are down-to-earth grassroots progressives, not at all like the bro country artists heard on mass-market FM radio.

  • source
  • hideshow 3 child comments
  • [–] 25 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (1 child)

    Kacey Musgraves is an amazing artist. She has been beloved by the LGBTQ+ community for a decade now.

    If you’re not familiar with her music, I would recommend starting with the song “Follow Your Arrow”, which is about living your life as authentically as possible and very explicitly supports the queer community. Here’s the chorus:

    So, make lots of noise (hey)\

    Kiss lots of boys (yup)\

    Or kiss lots of girls, if that's something you're into\

    When the straight and narrow gets a little too

    straight\

    Roll up a joint, or don't\

    Just follow your arrow wherever it points, yeah\

    Follow your arrow wherever it points

    “Golden Hour”, which is her Grammy-nominated album, is an absolute masterpiece and played a significant role in my first queer relationship. The song “Rainbow” still makes me tear up and look back fondly on my coming out years. I have seen her a few times in concert and she always dedicates it to the LGBTQ+ community.

  • source
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • [–] 2 points 1 month ago

    My spouse was obsessed with Space Cowboy for a while, which is an amazing song. But at some point, I was genuinely worried I was about to get divorced since she's listening to this saddest song ever about a breakup. Nope, just a super-captivating song, which I realized when I was also listening to it for the 5th time in a day.

    Speaking of which...

  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 22 points 2 months ago (8 children)

    Even before I clicked the post I knew exactly who it was. Kacey Musgraves is awesome and anybody who doesn't know her views just from her music just doesn't fuckin pay attention.

  • source
  • hideshow 8 child comments
  • [–] 7 points 2 months ago (7 children)

    Same. Kacey Musgraves is now the only nominee for the "only decent person in county music" award.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 7 child comments
  • [–] 15 points 2 months ago (6 children)

    hey don't speak so quickly! Country music is full of people like Nick Shoulders and Willie Carlisle, who are also two names you really should add to your repertoire.

    just gotta go lookin for em, they won't be promoted to you

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 6 child comments
  • [–] 7 points 2 months ago (4 children)

    Tyler Childers, Chris Stapleton, Jesse Welles, Bryan Andrews… there’re there. You just gotta look.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 4 child comments
  • [–] 2 points 2 months ago* (2 children)

    Jesse Welles is definitely folk music. Folk is not country and has always been fairly progressive.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
  • [–] 21 points 2 months ago (1 child)

    Kacey is too good for Nashville

  • source
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • [–] 18 points 2 months ago

    Like when the Dixie Chicks roasted their careers criticizing a war that chud got elected by criticizing. We’re among very stupid, thoughtless people. And they vote.

  • source
  • [–] 17 points 2 months ago

    A strong example of reality vs bots and amplified online voices.

    They make it seem like the two sides are closer than they are so when they steal the election it seems plausible.

  • source
  • [–] 15 points 2 months ago

    I lost my faith in humanity during covid. The sheer cruelty of people doesn't surprises me anymore.

  • source
  • [–] 14 points 1 month ago (1 child)

    "Lost me young lady, no more listening to you,” one former fan wrote to Musgraves on X.

    Uh oh, what will she do now?

    She has spent her career backing progressive causes, from supporting immigrants to gun control and LGBTQ+ rights.

    Nah she'll be fine

  • source
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • [–] 14 points 2 months ago

    Liked her before. Like her more now.

  • source
  • [–] 14 points 2 months ago (1 child)

    How dare she care about children!?

  • source
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • [–] 14 points 2 months ago

    How DARE she Try to Help CHILDREN!

    -Pro Life Jesus Loving Republicans who ONLY want to Hurt criminals!

  • source
  • [–] 13 points 2 months ago

    Scum fucks, the lot. Pure scum and villainy.

  • source
  • [–] 13 points 2 months ago (2 children)

    ‘It’s not a political thing’ Grammy-winning singer said on stage

    Ooh boy

  • source
  • hideshow 2 child comments
  • [–] 11 points 2 months ago (3 children)

    It's a tragedy that pop country music has become Republican radio.

    Now it's all jean-shorts, parting, and trucks. Bring back the alcoholism, divorce, and murder please.

  • source
  • hideshow 3 child comments
  • [–] 16 points 2 months ago

    It’s a tragedy that pop country music has become Republican radio.

    Now it’s all jean-shorts, parting, and trucks. Bring back the alcoholism, divorce, and murder please.

    I think bo burnum's "pandering" song is dead on the money. In short I think that's really it, Country music has a strong tie to a very uneducated population. As a result a very rich corporate machine realized they can mass produce it using the right key words to basically sell low effort music. The tiny handful that actually make it into the top by actually being talented and writing because of passion. Will inevitably trigger controversy by seeing humans as humans. Same thing happened with the Dixie Chicks a few years ago.

  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 6 points 2 months ago (1 child)

    Well a friend of mine named Steve Goodman wrote that song, and he told me it was the perfect country and western song. I wrote him back a letter, and told him it was not the perfect country and western song, because he hadn't said anything at all about mama, or trains, or trucks, or prison, or gettin' drunk.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • [–] 9 points 2 months ago

    However, once videos of the moment started circulating online

    Then the same thing that happens to any moment of attempted human connection and empathy happens in the cesspool of the internet.

  • source
  • [–] 7 points 2 months ago (4 children)

    Well done and fuck those online 'fans'.

    It’s not a political thing.

    I understand that she felt compelled to add that. But it's sad nevertheless.

  • source
  • hideshow 4 child comments
  • [–] 4 points 2 months ago* (2 children)

    Since everything is political the only way to get that through to people so steeped in the mainstream ideology that they don't view it as political, is to call your point also apolitical.

    Otherwise they just get their backs up and thinking you're proposing some new complication over their "default" or natural or whatever ideology.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
  • load more comments
    view more: next ›
    17 comments in c/politics@lemmy.world view that post
    4 comments in c/politics@lemmy.dbzer0.com view that post