Taylor Swift just made a major impact using her lucky number 13. The ‘Reputation’ singer donated a whopping $113,000 to fight anti-LGBTQ discrimination in her home state of Tennessee.
Taylor Swift took another rare political stance, this time donating an incredible $113,000 to Tennessee Equality Project, an LGBTQ advocacy group. The organization is fighting against six discriminatory bills in the state that are threatening the rights of LGBTQ individuals. One would allow adoption agencies to not let same-sex couples adopt, based on religious beliefs. Another would make it Tennessee’s policy to defend marriage as solely being between a man and a woman. A different bill adds bathrooms and locker rooms to places where someone can be charged with indecent exposure.
Tennessee Equality Project leader Chris Sanders announced the exciting news on Facebook: “Taylor Swift has been a long-time ally to the LGBTQ community. She sees our struggle in Tennessee and continues to add her voice with so many good people, including religious leaders, who are speaking out for love in the face of fear. Tennessee Equality Project is honored and grateful to reveal Taylor Swift has made a donation of $113,000 to support our efforts at this critical moment.” Chris also revealed that Taylor included a heartfelt, handwritten note with her donation:
“I’m writing you to say that I’m so inspired by the work you do, specifically in organizing the recent petition of Tennessee faith leaders standing up against the ‘State of Hate’ in our state legislature,” she wrote to Chris. “Please convey my heartfelt thanks to them and accept this donation to support the work you and those leaders are doing. I’m so grateful that they’re giving all people a place to worship.”
Taylor rarely involves herself in politics. She famously stayed silent during the 2016 presidential race while dozens of her fellow celebrities campaigned for candidates, shot PSAs, and worked to convince their fans to vote. She finally spoke up before the 2018 midterm elections, publicly calling out Tennessee’s Republican Senate candidate, Marsha Blackburn, for her anti-LGBTQ politics. She wrote in a lengthy Instagram post, one month before the election, “In the past I’ve been reluctant to publicly voice my political opinions, but due to several events in my life and in the world in the past two years, I feel very differently about that now. Days later, she urged her younger fans to vote early in the midterms, accompanying her PSA with a cute pic of her red, white, and blue nail polish.
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