Jason Aldean Dropped From PR Firm After Wife’s Transphobic Comments
Author: Cara Glass
Following his wife’s viral transphobic Instagram comments, it looks like country singer Jason Aldean is not getting off scot-free.
The Grammy-Award nominee’s public relations firm, The GreenRoom, has “stepped away” from working with the ‘If I Didn’t Love You’ artist, according to Billboard.
The firm’s co-owner Tyne Parrish opened up about their decision, telling the publication, “Music has always been and remains The GreenRoom’s core focus, so we had to make the difficult decision after 17 years to step away from representing Jason.”
Parrish added, “We aren’t the best people for the gig anymore, but will always be big fans of his music — he is one of the greatest live entertainers in country music.”
Though Parrish did not explicitly reveal why the company was choosing to walk away, the news comes one week after Aldean’s wife, singer Brittany Kerr Aldean, posted an Instagram video that gained backlash for its anti-trans rhetoric.
On August 23, Brittney shared a “before and after” makeup video, thanking her parents for “not changing my gender.”
“I’d really like to thank my parents for not changing my gender when I went through my tomboy phase,” Brittney wrote on Instagram. “I love this girly life.”
Aldean commented on his wife’s post with a laughing emoji, adding,
“Lmao!! Im glad they didn’t too, cause you and I wouldn’t have worked out.”
The damaging comments didn’t go unnoticed by the country music community — which is primarily a right-leaning industry — especially amongst two high-profile country artists.
“You’d think celebs with beauty brands would see the positives in including LGBTQ+ people in their messaging, ” Cassadee Pope wrote on Instagram Story and Twitter. “But instead here we are, hearing someone compare their ‘tomboy phase’ to someone wanting to transition. Real nice.”
Maren Morris joined in by tweeting, “It’s so easy to, like, not be a scumbag human? Sell your clip-ins and zip it, Insurrection Barbie.”
As a social media storm quickly ensued, Brittney doubled down on her remarks, claiming on August 26 that the comments were based on “protection” and rooted in “love.”
“The genital mutilation of children under the disguise of love and calling it ‘gender-affirming care’ is one of the worst evils,” Brittney posted to an Instagram Story, later adding, “Love is protecting your child until they are mature enough as an adult to make their own life decisions.”
On August 31, Brittney attempted to monetize her controversial statements, revealing her new “Barbie-inspired line” of merch that reads “Don’t Tread on Our Kids.”
“Per usual, my words have been taken out of context over the last week. Instead of getting twisted about the twisting of my words, I’ve chosen to bring some good out of it,” Brittney wrote.
On Thursday night, she joined conservative commentator Tucker Carlson on Fox News’s Tucker Carlson Tonight to discuss the controversy, claiming she was “extremely surprised” by the public’s reaction.
“I’m advocating for children. I think that children should not be allowed to make these life-changing decisions at such a young age…They are not mature enough. They should have parents that love them and advocate for them, regardless,” Brittney said.
Most medical associations support gender-affirming care for trans youth. In response to an attempt by GOP U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene to federally ban gender-affirming care for trans youth, Dr. Kellan E. Baker, executive director and chief learning officer of the Whitman-Walker Institute, a nonprofit health center working with LGBTQ+ patients, recently said in a statement, “All people, including transgender young people, deserve access to health care that helps them live safe and healthy lives.”
Baker added, “For transgender children, pediatricians provide social support, such as encouraging a family to allow a child to wear clothing or a hairstyle that helps them feel more comfortable. There’s a lot of misinformation out there, but the reality is that the only form of gender-affirming care for children is social support that helps kids understand and explore their gender as they grow up.”
Original Article on The Advocate
Author: Cara Glass
