Entertainment’s awards season has coincided with the Trump administration’s mass deportation campaign in Minneapolis, forcing artists to decide whether and how to join the growing cultural revolt against immigration crackdowns.
Pushback from music’s biggest stars was visible Sunday from the Grammys red carpet and throughout the telecast. Activists spent the week pressing celebrities to don pins protesting the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement presence in cities, working with their teams to spread the message and circulating them at the many events leading up to the ceremony.
Billie Eilish, Finneas and Carole King wore pins while appearing onstage. Even Justin and Hailey Bieber, who don’t normally address American politics, had them. Eilish began her song of the year speech by professing that “no one is illegal on stolen land.” British soul pop singer Olivia Dean, recognized as best new artist, shared that she is the granddaughter of an immigrant — people who she said “deserve to be celebrated.” Expletives flew as ICE got cursed multiple times by winners including Kehlani.
“Before I say thanks to God, I’m gonna say: ICE out,” Bad Bunny said to great applause while accepting the award for best música urbana album. “We’re not savage, we’re not animals, we’re not aliens. We are humans and we are Americans.”
The frequent pushback and buttons’ prevalence marked a much stronger showing of support than organizers saw at last month’s Golden Globes. Public backlash has grown since a Border Patrol officer shot and killed 37-year-old nurse Alex Pretti and federal agents detained 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos. The recent arrest of journalist Don Lemon, who attended Sunday’s ceremony, only added to the outcry.
Plus, as one organizer noted, the Grammys tend to draw a less risk-averse crowd than Hollywood’s shows.
“These are folks who are known for six-stage shows, crazy costumes, being kind of rebellious, punk rock — like that’s the music industry. And so, I think it makes sense that we would see good support,” Maremoto Executive Director Jess Morales Rocketto said ahead of the show. “These pins are about so much more than a red carpet moment. It’s about people taking a stand and doing what they can to show up to say that ICE should be out of our communities.”
Protest pins on the red carpet
Jason Isbell, Margo Price, Kehlani and Rhiannon Giddens were among the other artists wearing protest apparel on the Grammys red carpet.
Justin Vernon, whose band Bon Iver is up for best alternative music album, said he wore a whistle to honor the legal observers who are documenting federal agents’ actions on the streets.
“I think there’s a reason that music exists and it’s to heal and to bring people together,” he told The Associated Press. “But the real work are those observers on the on the ground in Minneapolis. We just want to want to shout them out.”
Earlier in the week, Mexican American singer Becky G had an explicit message for ICE on the nails she wore to the MusiCares Person of the Year gala. And at the Sundance Film Festival, several celebrities wore pins saying “ICE OUT” during their red carpet appearances, including Natalie Portman, Olivia Wilde and Zoey Deutch, who also wore a “BE GOOD” pin, referencing Renee Good, who was killed by an ICE officer last month.
Wilde told the AP that she was “horrified by this string of murders that we are somehow legitimizing and normalizing.”
“It’s really difficult to be here and to be celebrating something so joyous and beautiful and positive when we know what’s happening on the streets,” she added. “Americans are out on the streets marching and demanding justice, and we’re there with them. And if we can do anything with our platforms, you know, we can speak out and demand that ICE get out.”
Portman got emotional when asked about her “ICE OUT” pin at the premiere of her new film, “The Gallerist.”
“I’m so lucky to be here in a joyful, creative community celebrating a movie we’re really proud of. But it’s impossible to ignore what ICE is doing to our country. And I’m very inspired, though, by all of the amazing, amazing Americans who are coming out and supporting each other and being there in communities. It’s beautiful,” the actor said as she teared up.
Reasons celebrities may not speak out
As far as the Grammys go, Morales Rocketto, the community organizer who founded the Latino advocacy group Maremoto, said it’s “kind of a crapshoot” as to which entertainers actually wear the pins.
She described a range of industry forces working against artists’ political expression. Objections could come from record companies, managers or corporate partners.
“Maybe the design house that did their fashion deal for the red carpet didn’t want them to literally poke holes in the dress,” she said. “There’s like a million reasons for people not to do it.”
Artists might also face personal dangers themselves. Morales Rocketto pointed to the Trump administration’s threats to place ICE agents at the upcoming Super Bowl halftime performance by Bad Bunny, “one of the most invincible” entertainers in her view.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if we see some Latino artists wearing them,” she said of the pins. “But the reality is that just because Latino artists are rich and famous, doesn’t mean that they are exempt from the lack of safety that permeates so many Latinos and Latino families. They themselves may be undocumented or only have a green card or have mixed status families.”
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AP Film Writer Lindsey Bahr and AP journalist Brooke Lefferts contributed reporting from Park City, Utah.
