Election News

George Takei slams Chappell Roan for saying “both sides” of the election are the same

Chappell Roan is getting criticized for saying that "both sides" of the election "have problems."
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George Takei and his husband Brad Takei hug on the red carpet prior to the Howard Stern 60th Birthday Bash
George Takei and his husband Brad Takei hug on the red carpet prior to the Howard Stern 60th Birthday Bash Photo: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Out pop star Chappell Roan is getting flak on social media for comments she made about how she believes that “both sides” – that is, both Vice President Kamala Harris and Donald Trump – “have problems” and therefore she won’t be publicly endorsing anyone in the election.

And out actor George Takei had a few words for her.

Related:

George Takei explains how fury at Arnold Schwarzenegger made him come out

“I was so angry that I spoke to the press for the first time as a gay man at the age of 68.”

In an interview with The Guardian, Roan said that she has “so many issues with our government in every way.”

“There are so many things that I would want to change,” she said. “So I don’t feel pressured to endorse someone. There’s problems on both sides.”

“I encourage people to use your critical thinking skills, use your vote – vote small, vote for what’s going on in your city.”

The issue for a lot of people responding to her online is that “both sides” is a common refrain used to prevent critical examination of an election, often by wealthy centrists who have little stake in policy outcomes. Political columnists like third-party centrist Thomas Friedman and “moderate icon” David Broder made careers out of complaining about “both sides.”

Takei decided to respond on social media by pointing out that he doesn’t believe LGBTQ+ people are in a position to act like Republicans are just as good as Democrats on important issues.

“If you’re a high profile figure in the LGBTQ+ community, you need to take stand in this election. Both sidesing it when our community is under direct attack from the GOP is an irresponsible cop out,” he wrote.

Others also called her out, while some people supported her.

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