Over the past few months, millions of Americans have voiced their deep anger and concern over the tactics used by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) while targeting undocumented immigrants and even US citizens. The high-profile deaths during recent federal operations in Minneapolis of Renée Nicole Good and Alex Pretti by ICE agents have only sparked further widespread outrage. These incidents have prompted celebs like Pedro Pascal, Mark Ruffalo, Olivia Rodrigo, and Natalie Portman to call out what they see as excessive force and demand accountability.
At this past Sunday’s Grammy Awards, celebrities like Bad Bunny, Kehlani, and Billie Eilish spoke out against ICE during their acceptance speeches. This is something even the show’s executive producer, Ben Winston, supported, saying artists have the “freedom” to express what they’re feeling and thinking.
Yesterday, USA Today published an Op-Ed titled “PSA to celebs: Stick to performing, stay away from politics,” by writer Ingrid Jacques, who is a self-described libertarian-conservative from Oregon.
Jacques starts off the article by writing: “I’m not sure who all needs to hear this, but if your name is Bad Bunny or Billie Eilish, it’s definitely you: You are famous because of your talents as musicians, not because of your idiotic views on politics and President Donald Trump.”
She then goes out to say that actors and musicians always “need to pontificate on how awful Republicans are when they are accepting awards,” and that “these preachy, shallow diatribes” are doing the opposite, only alienating audiences, “including half the country who voted for Trump.”
Jacques, in criticizing Bad Bunny and Billie Eilish for calling out ICE in their speeches, suggested that the former would face some sort of backlash from lots of fans for “his politicking” during his Super Bowl halftime show. And then responding directly to Eilish’s comment that “our voices really do matter,” Jacques downplayed it by saying, “Maybe not as much as she thinks.” She then praised Jelly Roll for his speech and for being apolitical. Jacques finished the article by saying Bad Bunny and Eilish should “take note” and follow Jennifer Lawrence’s lead in not talking about politics.
Of course, the kind of hypocritical rhetoric Jacques is using is common in right-wing media. They like to frame themselves as defenders of free speech, but that principle only seems to apply when the speech reflects their own beliefs. And they praise celebrities for speaking up, but only when their comments align with right-wing talking points.
And someone who took note of that hypocrisy was Finneas, who clapped back at the article in a Threads post saying, “You just can’t do both. You can’t say it doesn’t matter what musicians or celebrities say or think but then talk about it for days. You’re out here making it matter. I’ll keep speaking up especially if it keeps bothering you.”
Finneas, who has long been outspoken on a range of issues and has recently been especially vocal about ICE, was met with praise on the internet (like this Reddit thread) for clapping back at the article:
“Finneas is very insightful about what’s going on with this country. I wish a lot more could be just like him and speak up, especially against backlash for voicing their opinions.”
“Especially right now. If you don’t speak up against fascism when given the chance, then you implicitly are part of the problem.”
“He’s got one of the highest IQs of any celebrity I’ve ever heard speak. Just a really smart, centered dude.”
“Funny how celebrity opinions don’t always matter; somehow, we need a full news cycle to complain about them.”
“You would think Donald Trump being elected not just once but TWICE would get across that it actually does matter what celebrities say and do. I mean, shit, the same was true of Reagan! Arnold Schwarzenegger was the governor of one of the largest economies in the world! It OBVIOUSLY matters.”
“LOL, and also let’s not forget how much hate celebrities get for not using their platform to advocate — all this article is is propaganda.”
“Always love an opinion piece that tells other people their opinions are stupid and should be kept to themselves.”
At a time when ICE’s actions have sparked national outrage and high-profile deaths, Finneas’ response really highlights why, yes, celebrity voices matter. And why attempts to silence them only reinforce the importance of speaking out. Let me know what you think in the comments below!