Over the weekend, Glastonbury Festival saw a cluster of artists using the stage to speak out about the reversal of Roe v. Wade. There were powerful calls for abortion rights, including one particularly potent "Fuck You" to the U.S. Supreme Court.
On Friday, the Supreme Court decision that created a constitutional right to abortion was overturned. The devastating decision will alter the lives of millions, setting back the clock for reproductive rights and justice.
The gravity of the ruling saw many famous figures issuing public responses, including artists like Kendrick Lamar, Olivia Rodrigo, Billie Eilish, Megan Thee Stallion, Phoebe Bridgers, and others who powerfully criticised the decision onstage at Glastonbury, the annual music festival held in Somerset, England.
Lamar, who recently released long-awaited album Mr. Morale and The Big Steppers, gave a haunting, fierce performance of track "United In Grief," a personal tale of pain that the artist visually and verbally aligned with the grief around Roe v. Wade's reversal. At the peak of the performance, a crown of thorns on top of his head, face streaming with blood, Lamar repeatedly rapped, "They judge you, they judged Christ, godspeed for women's rights" until he dropped the microphone and left the stage.
The day before, on Saturday, Rodrigo enlisted the help of Lily Allen to dedicate the British artist's 2009 hit "Fuck You" to the five Supreme Court justices who voted to overturn Roe v. Wade.
"I'm devastated and terrified that so many women and so many girls are going to die because of this," said Rodrigo. "I wanted to dedicate this next song to the five members of the Supreme Court who have showed us that at the end of the day, they truly don’t give a shit about freedom."
"This song goes out to the justices, Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Amy Coney Barrett, and Brett Kavanaugh,” she continued. "We hate you."
Megan Thee Stallion similarly took the stage on Saturday night, saying "My body is my motherfucking choice," to roaring audiences who chanted alongside her.
"Texas really embarrassing me right now; y’all know that’s my home state," she said. Texas is one of the states in which abortion will be effectively impossible to obtain.
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On Friday, the same day the Supreme Court's decision was delivered, Bridgers delivered a message at her set, too ("Who wants to say, 'Fuck the Supreme Court'?"), having her fans say the words right back.
The Friday night headliner, Eilish started off her set with grave words, before she began to sing "Your Power," a powerful track from her album Happier Than Ever the artist has called "an open letter to people who take advantage – mostly men."
"The song we're about to do is one of the favorites that we've written. It’s about the concept of power and how we need to always remember how not to abuse it,” Eilish said at Glastonbury. "Today is a really, really dark day for women in the U.S. I’m just going to say that as I cannot bear to think about it any longer in this moment."
Other major figures and groups at Glastonbury spoke out, including Kasey Musgraves and Years and Years. Idles frontman Joe Talbot also used a moment in the band's set to say America is being sent "back to the Middle Ages," and later saying, "Long live the open minded."
On Sunday, Lorde also delivered an impactful monologue on the Pyramid Stage. "Welcome to sadness. The temperature is unbearable until you face it. You wanna know a secret, girls? Your bodies were destined to be controlled and objectified since before you were born. That horror is your birthright," she said
“Here’s another secret — you possess ancient strength, ancient wisdom. Wisdom that has propelled every woman who came before you. That wisdom is your birthright. I ask you today, make accessing that wisdom your life’s work, because everything depends on that," the singer said. Lorde finished with a familiar statement from the weekend: "Fuck the Supreme Court."
The reversal of Roe v. Wade is indeed a dark milestone in American history. Both reproductive health and human rights have placed in jeopardy since the ruling. Organisations and activists are continuing to fight for the fundamental right, as half the country is expected to face the consequences of the decision.
Topics Activism Music Social Good Politics
