Taylor Swift accused of 'using LGBTQ people as props' in new music video
Taylor Swift’s new “You Need to Calm Down” video did the unthinkable — it brought her together with former feud-mate Katy Perry — but there have been critics of the overall theme.
Perry was just one celebrity making a cameo in the pop star’s song, which heavily featured LGBTQ stars, including the Queer Eye crew, Ellen DeGeneres, Adam Lambert, Laverne Cox, RuPaul, Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Billy Porter. Timed with Pride month, Swift sings about how “shade never made anybody less gay,” and name-checks GLAAD while imagery of same-sex marriage and drag performances play out. It ended with a call to sign a petition for the passage of the Equality Act.
While Swift using her platform to get political is applause-worthy — she had famously been politically neutral until speaking out against Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn in 2018 — many have issues with this song and video.
The Atlantic called it a “queasy double message” in which the “singer’s pro-gay single strangely compares her struggles with fame to more dangerous kinds of persecution.” The writer noted, “The entire song, indeed, subsumes queerness into Swift’s narratives. Its breathtaking argument: that famous people are persecuted in a way meaningfully comparable to queer people.”
Vox writes that Swift wants the song to be “a queer anthem,” yet it “also wants to sell you something.” It says she’s “speaking out in support of LGBTQ causes at a time that’s financially convenient, borrowing from subcultures that have already been proven to be lucrative (drag, for instance) and incorporating them into her brand.”
In a piece about the song, Esquire writes that while Swift’s “gesture is nice,” her “attempt to marry the personal with the political is a baffling parallel. Equating online haters with the personal and societal struggle of LGBTQ+ people is, at best, tone deaf.”
The Onion even spoofed the video with its “Taylor Swift Inspires Teen to Come Out As Straight Woman Needing to Be at Center of Gay Rights Narrative.”
Taylor Swift Inspires Teen To Come Out As Straight Woman Needing To Be At Center Of Gay Rights Narrative trib.al/IM2UJ3h
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Twitter is filled with similar sentiments. While there is a general appreciation for her attempt, they don’t think the execution was right.
I’m glad Taylor’s intentions are in the right place, but the misunderstanding of “shade” is criminal. Imagine seeing a Westboro Baptist Church “God Hates F*gs” sign and being like “oooh girl, the shade!”
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Maybe I'm just overly skeptical of Taylor Swift's intentions, but her new music video feels a lot like when corporations slap rainbows on their packaging to cash in on Pride.
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Me every time someone I like popped up in the video to be a prop for Taylor pic.twitter.com/C7rdF6iTQW
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Congratulations to Taylor Swift for figuring out a way to exploit gay pride for some recognition.
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Wake up you brain dead morons!!! Celebrities and corporations don’t care about lgbt people they just want our money! Taylor Swift can suck my toes then I’ll believe she genuinely respects lgbt people :^)
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Y’all gonna let Taylor Swift exploit the queer community for views like that? During pride month? Ok
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's other TweetsThey new #TaylorSwift video is visually very fun, but just comes across as awkward and pandering. Like, thanks wealthy straight white woman for using a litany of LGBTQ+ people to get views, bolster your “image” and make money
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katy perry and taylor swift became friends just in time to exploit pride month that's a funny coincidence
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Though many appreciate that she’s an ally.
Nothing Taylor does will ever be okay with you all. She has always been a huge LGBT+ ally, period
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to be in one of the gayest videos of the year! Thank you 
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