LAST NIGHT, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer vetoed SB 1062, a bill that would have given businesses the right to turn away gay customers on the grounds that serving them could violate merchants’ religious freedom. In honor of the governor’s rare moment of insight, I want to share a special track. I’m typically not a fan of the rapper Macklemore, but his song “Same Love” gets a fresh update by artist Angel Haze.
Music to Celebrate the Veto of Arizona's Anti-Gay Bill
Known for spitting quick verses over menacing beats, she slows down here to confess her own painful coming out story. She begins, “Hi Mom, I’m really scared right now,” — a hint of vulnerability beneath an otherwise badass image. “At age 13 my mom knew I wasn’t straight,” she says, later adding, “she sat me down on the couch, looked me straight in my face, and said you’ll burn in hell or probably die of AIDS.”
The message is that political, social, and legal forms of discrimination against LGBTQ folks needs to stop. Angel Haze is over it, and it’s time for some pockets of American society to catch up. “It’s funny now,” she raps. “But at age 13 it was pain. To be almost sure of who you are and have it ripped away.” 