Dolly Rebecca Parton
Hello my friends,
To begin with, Dolly was so loved, that even in this social media, hellscape, she created her own algorithm when she died. People poured out love and respect for her in such volumes that it filled the Internet and overwhelmed their little protocols. I find profound hope in that. It’s a reminder that we can beat the techno fascists and their weaponizing of our attention spans with a memory of someone who was kind. She is a reminder to never underestimate the power of kindness.
I’ve heard some chatter about Dolly Parton not being political. I find the shear level of ignorance in that comment staggering. If you have listened to any Dolly Parton records, if you’ve read the songs that she wrote, and the songs that she covered, you know that she was intensely political.
Songs about child abuse and child neglect. Songs about elder abuse and elder neglect. Songs about divorce, songs about domestic violence, songs about refugees. Songs about poverty, so many songs about poverty. She lived a life of action because of a childhood lived in poverty and a heart bigger than her other assets. Songs about finding the light to go on within difficult situations by looking inside oneself and finding inner strength. Songs about only surviving because of the kindness of those around you. Songs about prejudice against people that were different. Songs about racism, sexism, homophobia, ageism, ableism, and all the prejudices that divide instead of unite we the people.
She was covering songs about the death of deportees during the Reagan administration. She was singing about poor folks when Ronald Reagan was cutting the programs that allowed them to go to college. She was singing about poverty when Bill Clinton was destroying the safety net. She continued to give books to children to the day she died in a culture that wants to close libraries and ban books.
Dolly Parton wrote about the pain that social movements of the 20th century were created to solve. No child in poverty. No child without medical care. No elder living in squalor. The rights of refugees, the rights of workers, the rights of the sick, the rights of the old. And the rights of the poor. And a better world for all of us. Because when all of us are fed and taken care of, we are all better.
She wrote about love. The most intensely political emotion of all. If you love, as she loved, you can’t hurt anyone. If you truly love, you work for the good humanity. If you love, you do not walk past anyone in need.
So yes, Dolly Parton was political. I remember sitting in front of the TV when I was a kid waiting for the Dolly show to start. At the beginning of the show, she was lowered down on a swing singing, Love is like a butterfly. That was my song and I knew it was for me and everyone else who didn’t fit in this world. She saved so many of us. She gave so much hope. Thank you, Dolly.
I will always love you.
Christopher Blue
