Janelle Monáe said they aren’t willing to “sit back and be silent” as lawmakers introduce anti-LGBTQ legislation in record numbers around the US this year.
The Glass Onion star told Washington’s NBC affiliate that their response to efforts to pass anti-LGBTQ bills is to be “fighting back” against it.
“As a non-binary, queer, pansexual person, I am proud to be in this community,” said Janelle.
“I will never sit back and be silent about the injustices that are happening against our trans community.”
They continued: “They’re trying to erase our history, which is American history. If we’re erasing history, how are we supposed to correct the mistakes that the past has made and create a better future?”
The Lipstick Lover singer’s comments arrive as the US has experienced nearly 500 anti-LGBTQ bills so far this year, according to American Civil Liberties Union data.
Janelle previously spoke out against “an agenda for erasure” during an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour last year where they addressed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ “Don’t Say Gay” bill-turned-law and efforts from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to restrict lessons on race in his state’s schools.
“These are real experiences for our ancestors, real experiences for us,” they said.
“And erasure is happening right underneath our noses. And it’s being done through lawmaking.”
Janelle, who is set to release their album The Age Of Pleasure on Friday, told The Sydney Morning Herald that it’s important to create “safe spaces for brown and Black people to experience joy, to be and to exist, free from oppression and fear”.
“You can’t even talk about certain things in school any more. Those who are trans, they’re literally trying to erase their existence and not treat them with human decency,” Janelle said.
“So, of course we fight, but even in the middle of the fight we take time to find joy.”