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Singer Lizzo took the stage in Omaha, Nebraska on Friday to voice her disapproval of a recently passed bill supported by the GOP, which encompasses a 12-week abortion ban and denies gender-affirming care to transgender youth.
Coinciding with the legislative success of the bill, Lizzo chose her Omaha performance as a platform to assert her beliefs. Prior to launching into a critique of the legislation, she made it clear that anyone attending her shows should understand her stance on the rights to comprehensive healthcare, reproductive care, and gender-affirming care.
The emotional singer expressed her dismay at the fact that young individuals are growing up in a world that fails to safeguard their rights. With a heartfelt plea, she assured her audience that her concert would serve as a safe space for them.
You can watch the moment in the video below.
\u201cAmazing. Lizzo, in front of thousands of people, confronts LB574 - a gender affirming care ban and abortion ban - in Nebraska tonight.\n\n"Don't let anyone tell you who you are. These laws aren't real. YOU are real."\n\nhttps://t.co/UqzIvaUA1T\u201d— Erin Reed (@Erin Reed) 1684553970
Lizzo said:
“There’s times I get very political and as adults we feel it but there’s children here tonight. And it really breaks my heart that there are young people growing up in a world that doesn’t protect them."
“So let me be your safe space tonight. Don’t let anybody tell you who you are. Don’t let any laws tell you who you’re not, b***h. ... You are who you are, OK?” ...
“You deserve to be here in every form. You contain multitudes. These laws are not real. You are what’s real and you deserve to be protected. You deserve to be protected. And for anyone whose inner child needed to hear that, you deserve to be protected, too.”
The bill's passage in Nebraska aligns with recent restrictive abortion bans approved by Republicans in North Carolina and South Carolina. Meanwhile, GOP officials in Florida, Texas, Missouri, and Montana persist in their efforts to impede gender-affirming care within their respective states.
Notably, some Nebraska lawmakers were in attendance at Lizzo's concert, including state Senators Megan Hunt, an Independent, and John Fredrickson, a Democrat.
Fredrickson, who is openly gay, expressed gratitude to Lizzo for "giving Nebraska what it needed tonight."
\u201c\u201cDon\u2019t let anybody tell you who you are. These laws are not real. YOU are real.\u201d \n\nThank you, @lizzo, for giving Nebraska what it needed tonight.\u201d— Senator John Fredrickson (@Senator John Fredrickson) 1684551902
Hunt—who is openly bisexual and the mother of a transgender son—took to Twitter to expose the incongruity of legislators seeking LGBTQ+ money, entertainment, and culture while failing to support and protect LGBTQ+ lives and safety.
\u201cLol tonight @lizzo is performing in Omaha and Senator Ballard, who just voted for a bill to ban abortion & trans healthcare, is going.\n\nThey want LGBTQ money\nThey want LGBTQ entertainment \nThey want LGBTQ culture\nBut at they won\u2019t vote to protect LGBTQ lives and safety. \ud83e\udee0\u201d— Senator Megan Hunt (@Senator Megan Hunt) 1684532613
Others have praised Lizzo for speaking out.
\u201c@ErinInTheMorn And the crowd absolutely ROARED in support. It was deafening and beautiful.\u201d— Erin Reed (@Erin Reed) 1684553970
\u201c@ErinInTheMorn Not everyone in Nebraska is hateful! Thank you @lizzo! We will fight these cruel laws!\u201d— Erin Reed (@Erin Reed) 1684553970
\u201c@ErinInTheMorn @juliawb I'm a 72 yr old liberal and am beyond thrilled to hear Lizzo speak out like this. \ud83d\udc4f\ud83c\udffc\ud83d\udc99\ud83c\udf39\u201d— Erin Reed (@Erin Reed) 1684553970
\u201c@ErinInTheMorn I just love her. I am a bit old for her music, but I love her fierceness and willingness to speak out!\u201d— Erin Reed (@Erin Reed) 1684553970
\u201c@ErinInTheMorn The artists will always have our backs. \u2764\ufe0f\u201d— Erin Reed (@Erin Reed) 1684553970
\u201c@ErinInTheMorn Yes! More of this from other artists.\u201d— Erin Reed (@Erin Reed) 1684553970
Lizzo had previously spoken out against drag bans in the state of Tennessee.
Last month, far-right pundit Matt Walsh was one of the prominent Republicans who called for the singer to be "thrown in jail" for inviting drag performers to join her on stage at a Knoxville performance.
Lizzo invited several drag queens, including Vanessa Vanjie Mateo, Asia O'Hara, and Kandy Muse from RuPaul's Drag Race to perform with her at the Thompson-Boling Arena.