Cara Delevingne lashes out at ‘anti-LGBT’ Coachella owner
attends the Christian Dior show as part of the Paris Fashion Week Womenswear Fall/Winter 2018/2019 on February 27, 2018 in Paris, France.
Cara Delevingne has hit out at Coachella’s owner for being “anti-LGBT.”
The model and actress boycotted the music festival over the weekend because it’s owned by Philip Anschutz, who has been accused of donating to multiple anti-LGBT hate groups.
The billionaire, who heads Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG), has allegedly used his nonprofit foundation to donate to the Family Research Council and Alliance Defending Freedom.
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Earlier this year, he donated $1 million to the Elton John AIDS Foundation, but this did not seem to assuage Delevingne’s doubts.
The Suicide Squad star used the hashtag #NoChella to express her anger about Anschutz, but fans expressed their confusion with the 25 year old after she then posted about how much she enjoyed Beyoncé’s masterful performance.
As well as becoming the first black woman to headline the spectacular Californian festival, she was also just the third female solo act to headline Coachella, after Björk and Lady Gaga.
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Delevingne posted a photo of Beyoncé with the other two members of girl band Destiny’s Child, with the caption: “I am speechless.
“That performance made me burst into tears and sent shivers down my spine. Especially the Destiny’s Child reunion.
“ICONIC is an understatement. Thank you for inspiring so many and for lifting each other up. #GirlPower.”
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Delevingne also polled her followers on whether they teared up at the sensational performance.
Many asked how she could boycott Coachella while still watching the headline act.
In a response on Instagram Stories, the British star wrote: “I still refuse to go to a festival that is owned by someone who is anti-LGBT and pro-gun.
(Instagram/caradelevingne)
“I am able to shame that man and the festival and show my appreciation of an artist at the same time.
“Just because I love Beyoncé doesn’t mean I now love Coachella. I still wouldn’t go,” she added.
“I will let nothing get in the way of me showing my love or hate for something. Don’t let anyone come between you and your truth.”
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Fans joined Delevingne in her boycott, which she decided upon after a report by Freedom for All Americans alleged that Anschutz had poured vast amounts of funding into organisations including a fringe group that battles to keep sodomy laws around the world in practice.
AEG later responded with a statement on Twitter, saying: “AEG whole-heartedly embraces the LGBTQ community.
“Our recent support of the Elton John AIDS Foundation and its vital work speaks to our organisation’s true values.”
In a statement through the same Twitter account, Anschutz said: “I support the rights of all people and oppose discrimination and intolerance against the LGBTQ community,” he said.
“I see this as a matter of basic human rights. Our Foundation supports a broad range of philanthropic causes. I regret if any money given to a charity for other purposes may have indirectly worked against these values.
“That was not my intention, it does not reflect my beliefs, and I am committed to making sure that it does not happen again,” he added.
Delevingne explained her feelings about her sexuality last year, telling Glamour magazine: “I am very happy how sexuality has become easier and freer to talk about, especially for kids.
“Once I spoke about my sexual fluidity, [some] people were like, ‘So you’re gay,’ and I’m like, ‘No, I’m not gay.’
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“A lot of the friends I have who are straight have such an old way of thinking,” she added.
“It’s, ‘So, you’re just gay, right?’ [They] don’t understand it. [If] I’m like, ‘Oh, I really like this guy,’ [they’re like], ‘But you’re gay.’ I’m like, ‘No, you’re so annoying!’
“Someone is in a relationship with a girl one minute, or a boy is in a relationship with a boy, I don’t want them to be pigeonholed.
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“Imagine if I got married to a man. Would people be like, ‘She lied to us?’ It’s like, no.
“I’m not gay. I am… I’m not. I’m fluid! I like fluid.”
