Trent Reznor Slams “the Taylor Swifts of the World” for Putting Their Career Ahead of Speaking out Against Trump

Do you think politics have no place in metal? You’re wrong, and we’ll explain why. Do you think celebrities should keep their politics to themselves? You are also wrong, and Trent Reznor will explain why (via The New York Times):

“I was doing press with somebody in the mid-90s, and they made an argument that stayed with me: that I have influence, and that it’s my job to call out whatever needs to be called out, because there are people who feel the same way but need someone to articulate it. And I think about that today, because it seemed like it was a lot easier to just keep your mouth shut and let it go back then. You don’t hear a lot from the Taylor Swifts of the world, and top-tier, needle-moving cultural youth, because they are concerned about their brand, their demographic and their success and career and whatnot.”

Amen, brother. In case you somehow missed it, the Trump administration, after eighteen months of dipping their toes in the fascism water, dove in head first this week, separating families, keeping children in cages, blaming others for this cruel policy, and ultimately signing a largely meaningless document to try and make it look like they’ve repented (they haven’t — there’s still no plan in place to reunite the families they’ve already torn apart). We are now officially, 1,000%  past the point of “Shit could hit the fan.” Shit is hitting the fan. There’s no neutral, because this isn’t just politics; it’s ethics. There’s never been a more important time to speak out.

Interestingly enough, this isn’t the first time Swift has been called out for not taking a public stance against Trump. I doubt she’ll do so now that Reznor’s quote is making headlines. And yet, this all proves Reznor’s point about celebrities using their significant platform for good: if anyone didn’t know that Swift was a coward before, they do now.