God bless Dolly Parton.
The Queen of Country Music unfortunately passed away on Tuesday, August 25, and since then the tributes have been rolling in from all across the world – and from both sides of the political aisle.
President Donald Trump paid tribute to Dolly after her death by ordering all flags lowered to half staff for a week in honor of the country music icon:
And on the opposite side of the political spectrum, far-left organizations like the Communist Party USA and the Democratic Socialists of America also mourned her loss:
(If you want to see some insanity on display, read the comments on that post).
Dolly was the rare figure who was beloved by both the left and the right, because she refused to take sides in political debates or speak about politics in general. Instead, she simply supported people – regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, or sexual orientation.
Back in 2020, Dolly voiced her support for the Black Lives Matter movement in an interview with Billboard:
“I understand people having to make themselves known and felt and seen. And of course Black lives matter. Do we think our little white asses are the only ones that matter? No!”
And she was a vocal advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, joking that “they should suffer like the rest of us” when asked about gay marriage and relying on her faith to explain her love for all:
“But as far as the Christians, if people want to pass judgment, they’re already sinning. The sin of judging is just as bad as any other sin they might say somebody else is committing. I try to love everybody.”
But Dolly was expertly able to thread the needle between expressing her support for people without weighing in on political issues. She refused to talk politics, explaining that she had fans on both sides of the aisle and didn’t want to offend anyone:
“My mother was a Democrat and my daddy was a Republican, and I’m a hypocrite. I’ve got as many Republican fans as Democrats and I don’t want to make any of them mad at me, so I don’t play politics.”
That refusal to “play politics” was on expert display in 2018 during an interview for Nightline on ABC. Host David Wright repeatedly tried to bait Dolly into taking shots at President Donald Trump, especially after her 9 to 5 co-stars Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin had called him a “sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot” during an appearance at the Emmy Awards the previous year – with Dolly standing silently between them.
But when asked about the moment, Dolly refused to play Wright’s game:
“They’re always prone to be political, and I had said upfront, I’m not being political. I don’t do politics. I’m not getting into any of that, because I have a lot of fans out there and I don’t want to offend anybody. And besides, I just don’t get into that.”
Sensing where the interview was going, Dolly issued a warning to Wright:
“If you are deciding you may want to ask me something more serious, don’t, because I’m not going to answer it.”
The interviewer was desperate to get her to weigh in on Trump, and told her that he may still ask her political questions. But Dolly wasn’t backing down:
“You can ask, but I might still tell you where to put it if I don’t like where you got it.”
He then brought up the Access Hollywood tapes, hoping to get Dolly to comment on Trump’s 2005 comments that had been released during the 20116 presidential election. But Dolly once again shut him down:
“I’m not addressing that. I do not get into that.
Of course I have my opinion about everybody and everything. But I learned a long time ago, keep your damn mouth shut if you want to stay in show business. I’m not in politics. I’m an entertainer.”
Wright pointed out that Dolly was also a role model, and she quickly fired back:
“Yes I am. That’s why I don’t talk about people.”
What a legend.
Dolly’s refusal to get political was so strong that she even turned down the Presidential Medal of Freedom multiple times, from both President Trump and President Joe Biden, because she didn’t want to appear political by accepting it from one president over another – even though I think it’s clear that any president would have been willing to give it to her.
There may not be a more universally beloved figure in America than Dolly Parton, and that was thanks in no small part to her refusal to engage in politics.
Maybe more celebrities should take note.
