Taylor Swift knows you’re frustrated she wasn’t involved politically before now, and she got candid about why

Claire Harmeyer

Recently, Taylor Swift has worked to make her social and political views known by encouraging her fans to donate to GLAAD and petitioning senators on various causes she believes in. (Sometimes, some argue, maybe even to a fault by using LGBTQ stereotypes in her “You Need to Calm Down” video.) But for the majority of her career, she took a much different path. In a recent interview with Vogue, Swift explained why she remained politically silent for so long, and why she isn’t anymore.

On October 7th, 2018, Swift made her first, very open endorsement of Democratic candidates in her local midterm election. It was noteworthy because the singer was often the target of criticism for not using her platform to speak up during the 2016 presidential election.

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I’m writing this post about the upcoming midterm elections on November 6th, in which I’ll be voting in the state of Tennessee. 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. I always have and always will cast my vote based on which candidate will protect and fight for the human rights I believe we all deserve in this country. I believe in the fight for LGBTQ rights, and that any form of discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender is WRONG. I believe that the systemic racism we still see in this country towards people of color is terrifying, sickening and prevalent. I cannot vote for someone who will not be willing to fight for dignity for ALL Americans, no matter their skin color, gender or who they love. Running for Senate in the state of Tennessee is a woman named Marsha Blackburn. As much as I have in the past and would like to continue voting for women in office, I cannot support Marsha Blackburn. Her voting record in Congress appalls and terrifies me. She voted against equal pay for women. She voted against the Reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, which attempts to protect women from domestic violence, stalking, and date rape. She believes businesses have a right to refuse service to gay couples. She also believes they should not have the right to marry. These are not MY Tennessee values. I will be voting for Phil Bredesen for Senate and Jim Cooper for House of Representatives. Please, please educate yourself on the candidates running in your state and vote based on who most closely represents your values. For a lot of us, we may never find a candidate or party with whom we agree 100% on every issue, but we have to vote anyway. So many intelligent, thoughtful, self-possessed people have turned 18 in the past two years and now have the right and privilege to make their vote count. But first you need to register, which is quick and easy to do. October 9th is the LAST DAY to register to vote in the state of TN. Go to vote.org and you can find all the info. Happy Voting! 🗳😃🌈

A post shared by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift) on Oct 7, 2018 at 4:33pm PDT

Now, Swift is opening up about why she had remained silent, despite, as she says, supporting Hillary Clinton. And yes, it does have to do with that Kim Kardashian and Kanye West feud.

Before her sixth studio album, the infamous Swift-Kardashian-West feud blew up our social media feeds. Kardashian called Swift a liar and snake (we all know how Tay turned that one around) and, according to Swift, attacked and damaged her reputation. Hence, Swift’s album Reputation, which seemed a direct response to all the drama.

In the Vogue interview, Swift addressed how the scandal affected her.

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WELL SO THIS IS A THING THAT’S HAPPENING. September issue of @voguemagazine and I’m so so so grateful to Anna, @tonnegood, @sergiokletnoy and basically anyone who was like ‘yeah she can be on the Sept issue cover’. What an amazing experience shooting with @inezandvinoodh.

A post shared by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift) on Aug 8, 2019 at 6:03am PDT

This all unfolded amid the 2016 election. And because of the intense backlash, Swift says she believed speaking up in support of Clinton would have done more harm than good for the candidate.

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It’s clear Swift doesn’t want to disappear anymore. When Vogue asked why she decided now was the time to speak out for the LGBTQ community, she was candid.

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🌈HAPPY PRIDE MONTH!!!🌈 While we have so much to celebrate, we also have a great distance to go before everyone in this country is truly treated equally. In excellent recent news, the House has passed the Equality Act, which would protect LGBTQ people from discrimination in their places of work, homes, schools, and other public accommodations. The next step is that the bill will go before the Senate. I’ve decided to kick off Pride Month by writing a letter to one of my senators to explain how strongly I feel that the Equality Act should be passed. I urge you to write to your senators too. I’ll be looking for your letters by searching the hashtag #lettertomysenator. While there’s no information yet as to when the Equality Act will go before the Senate for a vote, we do know this: Politicians need votes to stay in office. Votes come from the people. Pressure from massive amounts of people is a major way to push politicians towards positive change. That’s why I’ve created a petition at change.org to urge the Senate to support the Equality Act. Our country’s lack of protection for its own citizens ensures that LGBTQ people must live in fear that their lives could be turned upside down by an employer or landlord who is homophobic or transphobic. The fact that, legally, some people are completely at the mercy of the hatred and bigotry of others is disgusting and unacceptable. Let’s show our pride by demanding that, on a national level, our laws truly treat all of our citizens equally. 🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈 Click the link in my bio to sign the petition for Senate support of the Equality Act.

A post shared by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift) on May 31, 2019 at 9:05pm PDT

It seems that now Swift is choosing to fight for what she believes in instead of worrying about making mistakes. We love how she’s using her voice to call for change, and we can’t wait to hear more of what she has to say when Lover is released on August 23rd.