In an interview with LGBT glossy The
Advocate, out singer-songwriter Melissa Etheridge had some advice
for young people concerned about President Donald Trump's divisive
politics.
Etheridge is among the many artists who
will perform at this year's WorldPride closing ceremony in New York
City's Times Square on Saturday, June 30. The event is part of the
50th anniversary of the Stonewall Inn uprising, which is
widely credited with sparking the modern LGBT rights movement.
“Playing WorldPride just helps me see
how far we've come, the work that we have to do, and how strong our
community is,” Etheridge said.
“The work that the people that came
before us, whew! The ones that are still alive, I hope that they know
how grateful we are for the work that they did,” she said of
activists in the 60s an 70s.
When asked to give advice to younger
people concerned about the Trump administration's policies on climate
change, Etheridge answered: “'Oh, honey, I've seen leaders come and
go.' I just came back from Europe this weekend. When I was in Berlin,
I remembered how in 1989 I had a show in Berlin … the very weekend
that the Wall fell down.”
“And I watched them actually tear
down that wall, and at that moment as a 27-year-old, I knew that
people can do anything, can bring about any change. Do not despair,
someone who has just learned how to divide us over our fears, it
doesn’t last long. The only thing – as corny as it sounds, love
is always stronger than fear, and there’s not enough darkness in
the world to put out one candle. So be that candle, be that hope.
Hope is what inspires the rest of us, so be that,” she
said.