The Dixie Chicks and Thought Crimes

On January 26, 2003, the three women known as the “Dixie Chicks” were riding a wave of popularity. They were one of the hottest acts in America, and their status was confirmed that afternoon in San Diego, when they sang the National Anthem at the Super Bowl.

On March 10, 2003, Natalie Maines of Lubbock, Texas, the lead singer for the group, told an audience in London that she was opposed to the war that the U.S. was preparing to launch against Iraq. She said, “Just so you know, we’re on the good side with y’all. We do not want this war, this violence, and we’re ashamed that the President of the United States is from Texas.”

That’s it.

She said, “We’re ashamed that the President of the United States is from Texas,” and the careers of the Dixie Chicks almost ended. Their records were no longer played on the radio. Concerts in the U.S. were cancelled. Death threats were sent to the three women who had performed the National Anthem at the Super Bowl, just six weeks earlier.

What happened to the Dixie Chicks happened to us all, just not as dramatically or publicly. As the Bush administration campaigned for war against a country that had no connection to 9/11, anyone who spoke out against the war was deemed unpatriotic. All across America, ordinary people had to mind their tongues or risk social ostracism, or worse. The Dixie Chicks lost their careers for several years, and ordinary Americans lost friends, as well as their freedoms.

I admire the comeback that the Dixie Chicks have made, but they had to find a new audience. Their old one on country radio still doesn’t want to hear their records. That old audience still thinks it highly offensive for a Texan to say she is ashamed of someone who pretends to be a Texan.

So, I think it appropriate to examine what George W. Bush did that made him an embarrassment to Texas:

• He sat paralyzed in a Florida classroom while terrorists were crashing airplanes into buildings. A real Texan would have jumped up to try to help other people.

• He allowed himself to be flown aimlessly around the country, instead of to Washington, D.C. A real Texan would have headed to where the fight was.

• He stood on top of the rubble of the World Trade Center with a bullhorn to make himself look like a leader. A real Texan knows not to stand on top a grave.

• He gave a speech on national television to explain why we were attacked by terrorists and his only explanation was that they “hate our freedom”. A real Texan is smart, curious, and wants to learn what he doesn’t yet know.

• He outsourced the hunt for Osama bin Laden to local warlords, instead of sending in the fighting forces of the United States. A real Texan knows to use his best resources if he wants to do a good job.

• He called out Iraq, Iran and South Korea as the “axis of evil”. A real Texan doesn’t bully or pick fights.

• He beat the drum for war against Iraq by confusing Americans into believing that Saddam Hussein of Iraq had something to do with the 9/11 attack. A real Texan tells the truth.

• He ignored the reports of the weapons inspectors who said there were no WMD (weapons of mass destruction) in Iraq, and instead pushed for “pre-emptive war”. A real Texan doesn’t shoot first.

• He lumped all Muslims together with the terrorists by using the pronoun “they” in the same sentence as “attacked us on 9/11”, many times. A real Texan does not advocate racially or religiously intolerant ideas.

• He and his administration called out anyone in opposition to the Iraq War as unpatriotic, or worse. A real Texan respects others and their opinions.

• He used the nation’s unity after 9/11 to push a radical social agenda that the majority of Americans did not want. A real Texan doesn’t violate a trust confided in him.

The Dixie Chicks paid a high price for correctly identifying George W. Bush as a pretender, rather than a Texan that we could be proud of. Their crime was a thought. Their only action was to speak a few words. Their punishment in the court of public opinion was severe. George W. Bush did nothing to stop the pillorying. And for that I’m ashamed that he is from Texas.