In the past, Taylor Swift has kept politics out of her public social media channels — to the point that critics and detractors have quite publicly asked her to take stances like denouncing white supremacist groups co-opting her image. Instead, she has taken action in different ways, like threatening to sue.
Today however, in the wake of a landmark decision by the Senate to confirm Brett Kavanaugh as a justice on the Supreme Court, despite compelling, credible testimony by Dr. Christine Blasey Ford about him sexually assaulting her as a teen, Swift has written a public, decisive post on her Instagram about how she will be voting for midterm elections and what exactly her political beliefs are.
In her lengthy post, Taylor wrote that she believes in the fight for LGBTQ rights, and that she is against any form of discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender. She also wrote that she believes the “systemic racism we still see in this country towards people of color is terrifying, sickening and prevalent.” Swift went even further, skewering the voting record of Tennessee’s Republican senator Marsha Blackburn, and throwing her support behind the Democratic candidate for Senate, Phil Bredesen, and the Democratic candidate for House of Representatives, Jim Cooper. She also urges her fans, especially those who have just recently turned 18, to register to vote. Check out the full text of her post below, and kudos to Taylor for using her massive platform to explain to her fans exactly where her values lie.
“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! ???”
Earlier this year, Taylor took another strong political stance, supporting the March For Our Lives and gun control reform, and of course, last year she faced a sexual assault case of her own in court, suing a former DJ who groped her during a meet and greet for $1. She won that case, in what many considered to be a very public victory for assault victims. Surely, this experience is one of the events she’s referencing that helped inform her decision to go public with her political choices for midterms.
