Taylor Swift is under fire from furious fans who have condemned her silence on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after the fatal shootings of Alex Jeffrey Pretti and Renée Nicole Good.
In recent weeks, numerous musicians including Ariana Grande and Billie Eilish have used their platforms to decry border patrol agents after violent raids in Minnesota saw two residents shot dead.
Mother-of-three Good was killed following a confrontation with an ICE officer on January 7 in Minneapolis.
Pretti, a fellow resident and nurse, was shot dead during an altercation with federal agents on January 24. They were both 37.
Both deaths ignited a huge online response and triggered protests across the country, but billionaire pop star Swift, 36, has been notably quiet – much to the disappointment of her fans.
Venting their frustrations online, several social media users discussed Swift’s silence on a Reddit thread titled, ‘The longer Taylor is quiet about ICE while her peers speak out, the louder her silence becomes.’
‘As someone who stated she wanted to be vocally on the right side of history, it is even more glaring she has been quiet,’ the original poster said.
‘Why is it she only talks about feminism when it relates to her and her female friends? We need to learn from American history.’
Taylor Swift has been called out for her silence over ICE
Demonstrators protest against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in Minnesota on January 27
Many agreed with the title of the post and shared their own thoughts in the thread.
‘For someone who, in Miss Americana, was frustratedly crying saying she wanted to be on “the right side of history” where is her voice now?’ commented one.
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‘I understand safety concerns for her and her team, but lots of people have to worry about that too. Let alone the people who are literally at risk of being forcibly taken off the streets! C’mon Taylor.’
Another accused Swift of ‘almost showing complicity’ by her lack of public response.
They commented: ‘Normally I am a person who says that it’s entirely a person’s choice whether they choose to speak out or not.
‘But the situation in the US is far from normal now. It’s a situation where you MUST speak out because these times are truly times history will look back on.
‘And to not speak out at such a time is almost showing complicity. I find a lot of Swifties defending her saying she did endorse Harris. But it’s not enough.
‘As the country is falling faster into fascism, it is not enough at all. I’m really surprised she hasn’t spoken out more. But billionaires losing touch with reality is hardly a new phenomenon.’
Renee Nicole Good, pictured, was shot and killed by an ICE agent in Minneapolis on January 7
Minnesota nurse Alex Pretti, 37, was fatally shot by Border Patrol agents in the street
‘I’ve never heard silence quite this loud,’ a third added.
Discussion of Swift’s silence has also reached X, formerly known as Twitter.
‘Celebrities are standing up against ICE, but you know who’s been silent this entire administration? Taylor Swift,’ one said.
‘Taylor Swift said anything yet or is she still planning her wedding?’ another asked.
Numerous stars across the music industry and beyond have used their platform to shun ICE.
Singer and actress Grande, 32, reposted a tweet shared by NYC mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani who wrote, ‘As tens of thousands across America protest the violence that ICE sows with impunity, federal agents shot and killed another personal in Minneapolis today.
‘ICE terrorizes our cities. ICE puts us all in danger. Abolish ICE.’
At the time of writing, Swift has not used her platform to condemn border patrol agents
Numerous stars across the music industry and beyond have used their platform to shun ICE
Olivia Rodrigo, 22, also took to Instagram over the weekend and wrote: ‘ICE’s actions are unconscionable, but we are not powerless. our actions matter. I stand with Minnesota.’
Singer-songwriter Billie Eilish slammed ICE and President Donald Trump’s administration as she accepted an award on January 25 in Atlanta.
In accepting the honors from the King Center, she said everything felt a bit out of place with the way she saw the world moving in the wrong direction.
‘To be honest, I really don’t feel deserving,’ she said.
Eilish, 24, made specific reference to Good’s death and added: ‘We’re seeing our neighbors being kidnapped, peaceful protesters being assaulted and murdered, our civil rights being stripped.’