At various award shows and events, an upsurge in celebrities voicing their political opinions has become noticeable. Whether it is Meryl Streep’s Golden Globes speech, Jimmy Kimmel’s Oscar opening filled with Trump jokes, or alternatively–an untypical attitude presented in Hollywood–Joy Villa’s pro-Trump MAGA dress at the Grammy’s, celebrities have been and will continue to input their political views (at least for the next four years!) into mainstream entertainment events that are bound to reach a large audience. Although the rise of political speeches given by celebrities makes electrifying discourse and debate, it has gotten to the point where, frankly, it gets annoying. I’ve never been an awards-show type of person, but their overly political nature has now turned me away from them completely. I don’t blame celebrities for using their platform as a way to address current issues, but making every event or award speech a political statement gets irritating and alienating.

For the past year and a half, people have become more politically aware than ever! However, it is obviously stressful paying attention to politics all the time, especially when it seems like that’s all anyone ever talks about. Even subconsciously, people will insert their political stances into conversations. People want a break! People need a break! The award shows and events that make up a large part of mainstream American culture are now a hub of inescapable political viewpoints. A celebrity will go on stage, accept their award, say their thank yous and transition into a full-blown speech about any issue they choose. No, it’s not wrong–and believe me, I’d marry the human manifestation of the first amendment if I could–but it brings unwanted stress and annoyance to people (regardless of their personal stance) who want a mini hiatus from anything related to politics?

Political awareness and discussion are valuable because they allow us to view issues and ideas from different perspectives. Content creators have always used politics to their advantage, making bold statements about current issues. However, celebrity attempts to insert politics into every speech, every joke, every performance, etc., is tiring. It’s sucking the energy out of people who are gladly enjoying any event; suddenly, a political bomb is dropped into their mind when they were watching the show to get rid of that. Celebrities are ushering the start of a new Enlightenment period without the Enlightenment because there is generally no variation whatsoever in the stances they present. You watch award shows expecting to watch people receive their trophy, not to be lectured by a member of the elite who is only repeating what you have to hear day after day. As much as a person may feel a part of the event, distance yourself from the moment and see, award shows are bubbles of elitist celebrities who are literally applauding one another for saying what the majority of them believe. Celebrity speeches are not profound or shocking or worthwhile, they’re expected.

Events, where large audiences will view a message, do provide celebrities with the perfect opportunity to share their stance on a wider scale, especially something like an awards show. Millions of people across the nation and globally watch, anticipating the winners, looks of the night, who’s sitting next to who, and of course, the speeches. If a celebrity wanted to give a speech on their beliefs, that would be a great place to do it, but is it the appropriate place? Acceptance is a common subject addressed in speeches. Broad subjects such as these are always open for interpretation. What one person views as acceptance could be the same or different from someone else’s view on acceptance. However, celebrities tend to forget the big picture: Half of the country does not agree with them! When celebrities accept their award and make their speech, they forget that not everyone shares the same ideas. The speech will talk about their stance and then finish off with the idea of acceptance, but will subtly make the statement that if someone disagrees with that viewpoint they are not accepting. If alienation of half of the country was the goal, then surely, it was achieved. The idea of acceptance also includes accepting the fact that other people will not agree with you and that’s overlooked constantly. Acceptance of radically different views from your own can be hard when you feel strongly about your values. Alienating half of the country should not be the result during awards shows that also try to repair and unite the country despite differences in opinion.

Politics in television proved that our nation will disappear as more and more celebrity elite politics are established as the norm. Hey, look on the bright side, at least there’s an off button! Maybe the usual escape found in television will come in a different form of entertainment.