Chappell Roan was recently profiled by Rolling Stone, and I personally thought she came across as very immature overall, and quite uninformed about politics. She heavily implied that President Biden would come after her and her family for speaking about Palestine, she spoke lovingly about her Republican family and she refused to endorse any candidate. Then, a few days ago, she spoke to the Guardian and this section got a lot of attention:
…And even though Kamala Harris used her deliriously goofy Femininomenon in a campaign video (“What we really need is a femininomenon!”) and seemingly copied the design of an official Roan baseball cap, Roan hasn’t endorsed her. And, in June, while dressed as Lady Liberty, Roan told the crowd at Governor’s Ball festival in New York that she had declined an invitation to perform at a White House Pride event: “We want liberty, justice and freedom for all. When you do that, that’s when I’ll come.”
“I have so many issues with our government in every way,” she says. “There are so many things that I would want to change. So I don’t feel pressured to endorse someone. There’s problems on both sides. I encourage people to use your critical thinking skills, use your vote – vote small, vote for what’s going on in your city.” The change she wants to see in the US in this election year, she says instantly, is “trans rights. They cannot have cis people making decisions for trans people, period.”
I cannot even adequately put into words the contempt I have for people saying “There’s problems on both sides.” If you, like Roan, consider trans rights the most important issue of this election and YOU STILL WON’T VOTE FOR HARRIS-WALZ, then you’re just an attention-seeking a–hole. Well, people have been talking sh-t about Roan all week, and now she’s made a new TikTok about all of this:
Chappell Roan explains her political beliefs in a new TikTok video, offering clarification on what she meant in previous statements. pic.twitter.com/auoFuOpohe
— Pop Flop (@PopFlopHQ) September 25, 2024
All of what she says about critical thinking reminds me so heavily of the “do your own research” anti-vaxxer talking points. Like, that whole section really resonated with Aaron Rodgers. “Actions speak louder than words and actions speak louder than an endorsement.” I never thought I’d say this, but damn, Taylor Swift endorsing the Harris-Walz ticket really was a profile in courage, right? Taylor’s endorsement was thoughtful and mature, even more so when confronted with a wannabe LGBTQ advocate who thinks “both sides” have problems. And: “Hear it from my mouth, no, I’m not voting for Trump and yes, I will always question those in power and those making decisions over other people.” Another Jill Stein voter.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.