Dolly Parton may have a reputation for shying away from sharing her opinion on political topics, but she’s been a vocal proponent of taking COVID-19 safety precautions seriously since the beginning of the pandemic. Not only did the singer donate $1 million to help fund the Moderna vaccine, but she also posted a video of her getting the shot. Now, Parton shares her thoughts on anti-maskers, saying she doesn’t “think it’d kill anybody to wear their mask and to do their social distancing.”
The singer recently had a conversation with Mic about all of her recent accomplishments, like her upcoming novel Run, Rose, Run. Parton also discussed her thoughts around the pandemic’s safety measures, saying she at first didn’t realize there would be people who would refuse the vaccine. Staying true to her diplomatic nature, Parton says she’s “not one to tell people what to do,” but still thinks everyone needs to be “mindful” — especially when it comes to wearing a mask:
“I’m not one to get in the middle of controversy. When I first donated my money to help with it, and I got my shot, I thought everybody was waiting in line to get their shot. I didn’t realize there were people not wanting to do it whether for religious reasons, health reasons, personal reasons — whatever it be. I’m not one to tell people what to do. But I was just happy to be part of that, and I think we all certainly need to do our part in being careful. Whether you get the shot or not, you need to be mindful. And I don’t think it’d kill anybody to wear their mask and to do their social distancing, especially now that we have new variants of the pandemic going around. So I really think people should just be very cautious, and careful and mindful, and like I said I’m not one to bother around in people’s lives, I just try to do my part the best I can.”
Read Parton’s full interview with Mic here.
