Lizzo doesn’t care why people are bigoted but does believe the answer would explain a lot. In a series of tweets Wednesday morning, the “About Damn Time” singer said if people understood the root of people’s racist, anti-trans, and anti-fat beliefs then there would be less support for bigotry.
“Transphobia is lookin real rooted in racism right about now,” Lizzo wrote in her first of several tweets amid the rise in anti-LGBTQ, and specifically anti-trans, legislation sweeping Republican stronghold states.
Transphobia is lookin real rooted in racism right about now…
On Tuesday, the Arkansas Senate approved a bill that criminalizes transgender people from using restrooms that align with their gender identity. The bill now heads to the Arkansas House, which has a Republican majority.
Additionally, governors in six Republican states — Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, South Dakota, Tennessee, and Utah — have recently signed bills restricting medical care for trans youth.
In response to the wave of anti-trans legislation, many celebrities have vocalized support for trans communities, including Lizzo. In a follow-up tweet, she said she hasn’t seen people explain their bigotry and believes doing so would be illuminating.
“I’ve never heard a person say why they’re racist… Or fatphobic.. I’ve never heard a reason why someone is transphobic,” Lizzo wrote. “I think if we knew ‘why’ these people felt this way there would [be] way less support for these ideals. Because the ‘why’ is more insidious than we realize.”
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.
In a third tweet less than an hour after her second post, Lizzo said if more people understood what fueled people’s bigotry then there would be less complacent silence and apathetic participation “wouldn’t fly.”
“Don’t get it twisted— I don’t care why people are bigoted. That’s a waste of my imagination,” Lizzo wrote. “I feel like there’s a lot of complicit silence and apathetic participation going on that wouldn’t fly if people knew more.”
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. https://t.co/CxcLi86qnL
In addition to bills targeting the transgender community, there’s been a rise in Republicans trying to regulate drag performance. On Thursday, Tennessee became the first state to ban drag performances from the public eye or in the presence of minors.
Other celebrities like Gabrielle Union, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Sheryl Crow have openly supported the trans community in light of the ongoing politicization.