Taylor Swift Donated $113,000 to Fight Tennessee’s Anti-LGBTQ+ Bills

There is some bad blood between Taylor Swift and some bills currently going through the Tennessee legislature.

The singer donated $113,000 to the Tennessee Equality Project, a statewide LGBTQ+ advocacy group, according to a public post on the Project's private Facebook group.

"Taylor Swift has been a long-time ally to the LGBTQ community," executive director Chris Sanders wrote on Facebook. "She sees our struggle in Tennessee and continues to add her voice with so many good people, including religious leaders, who are speaking out for love in the face of fear. Tennessee Equality Project is honored and grateful to reveal Taylor Swift has made a donation of $113,000 to support our efforts at this critical moment."

Along with the donation, Swift sent a letter thanking the organization for its work, specifically for its work getting faith leaders to speak out against anti-LGBTQ+ legislation in the Tennessee legislature.

"I'm writing you to say that I'm so inspired by the work you do, specifically in organizing the recent petition of Tennessee faith leaders standing up against the 'slate of hate' in our state legislature," Swift wrote. "Please convey my heartfelt thanks to them and accept this donation to support the work you and these leaders are doing. I'm so grateful that they're giving all people a place to worship."

The "slate of hate" refers to six anti-LGBTQ+ bills in the Tennessee legislature, including two bills allowing adoption agencies to discriminate against prospective parents based on religious beliefs. Another bill would require the state attorney general to defend school districts who stop trans students from using the bathroom that matches their gender identity.

Swift, who was born in Pennsylvania but moved to Nashville when she was 14, has previously waded into local politics in 2018 when she endorsed Tennessee Democrat Phil Bredesen on Instagram, citing his incumbent opponent Marsha Blackburn's terrible voting record. Swift specifically cited her voting against equal pay for women and voting not to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act. The Instagram post spurred a statewide voter registration spike. Blackburn ended up winning her reelection bid.

"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," Swift wrote at the time. "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."

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