Dixie Chicks unaware of the ‘true meaning of oppression’
Dear Editors:
Re: “Red, white and blacklisted all over” (Journal, January 16, 2007).
The one interesting part of the otherwise tiresome Dixie Chicks affair is actually perfectly exemplified by Andrew Kelly’s review of Shut up and Sing. Kelly and the majority of Queen’s students are likely to imagine that they are superior to the redneck hicks in the American heartland.
Normally, a country music act like the Dixie Chicks would be dismissed with the same contempt Kelly reserves for Bill O’Reilly. It’s emblematic of the extent of political orthodoxy here that Kelly feels free to so lightly dismiss this popular and respected conservative who most certainly knows what he’s talking about. The political spectrum here is largely limited to those who fall somewhere between the radical left and mere political correctness. So what does it take to becomea hero of the “progressives”? All you have to do is mindlessly bash President Bush—the cover of Time magazine awaits. Suddenly you become purveyors of “absorbing and intelligent social commentary” and defenders of free speech.
Give me a break! There’s no free speech issue here. People exercised their rights as consumers by deciding not to buy the albums and radio stations reacted to the desires of their customers. The real defenders of free speech are the men and women in the U.S. armed forces who are putting their lives on the line every day fighting barbarians who would teach the Dixie Chicks the true meaning of oppression.
That’s not something I ever expect to see acknowledged by the Journal.
Douglas Treilhard
ArtSci ’10
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