Earlier this month, Lizzo partnered with Dove to help promote the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) with an online petition. Her involvement with the project included a statement explaining her support of the bill. “Social media is supposed to be a place where people can express themselves and be a source for beauty confidence, not anxiety,” Lizzo’s statement in the campaign’s press release reads. “Seeing the negative impact social media is having on youth mental health today is devastating and has to stop. Join us and use your voice to help make change.”
On Wednesday, April 26, the activist group Fight for the Future shared a petition calling on Lizzo to revoke her support for the bill. Opponents of the bill noted that it’s been condemned by organizations including the ACLU, GLAAD, and the National Center for Transgender Equality over concerns that the bill’s vague language could potentially lead to conservative-led censorship of LGBTQ+ content, reproductive health care resources, and more.
Fight for the Future’s appeal to Lizzo notes her strong track record of support for the LGBTQ+ community. On Friday, April 21, Lizzo performed at an arena in Knoxville, Tennessee, where she brought out several drag performers in protest of the state’s anti-drag law.
“Young people need to hear Lizzo’s positive message, but the irony is that under KOSA, social media platforms would almost certainly be prevented from recommending her songs and videos to minors,” said Evan Greer, musician and director of Fight for the Future. “Lizzo has been a strong ally to the LGBTQ community. I’m sure she wouldn’t support this bill if she knew how many LGBTQ groups oppose it and how it would actually harm kids rather than helping them. Our hope is that this petition can get her attention and she’ll do the right thing and drop support for KOSA. Instead, she and Dove should focus their efforts on thoughtful efforts like strong privacy and antitrust legislation to hold Big Tech companies accountable and reduce their harm.”
Pitchfork has reached out to Lizzo’s representatives for comment.