Taylor Swift criticised for expressing solidarity with Women's March while not attending

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Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

Taylor Swift has come under fire for her display of solidarity with the Women’s March in Washington.

Despite the fact the singer expressed her support for the protest against President Donald Trump on Saturday, some people were less than pleased that she didn't attend the actual march in person.

“So much love, pride, and respect for those who marched. I'm proud to be a woman today, and every day. #WomensMarch,” Swift wrote on Twitter.

While at first glance, it is hard to see why the pop singer's expression of support for the march garnered so much negative attention, if you take a closer at the content of the criticism being directed at her, it becomes clear there is something of a subplot to people’s anger.

Some of the displeasure stems back to the fact Swift was one of the few celebrities not to be vocal about their political allegiances during the fiercely divisive presidential campaign.

While many fellow musicians and actors relished in rebuking Mr Trump and aligning themselves with Hillary Clinton, Swift always remained silent. In fact, she did not weigh in on the presidential campaign until election day when she posted a photo of herself queuing to cast her vote and urged her 83 million Twitter followers to do the same.

“If you were really for feminism you would have spoken up against Donald Trump instead of just saying to vote on Election Day,” one person said on Twitter in response to her tweet about the march.

“But she really should have done more, march? Maybe say something during the election?” said another.

Others expressed scepticism about her feminism. Swift has identified herself as a feminist and directed her Grammys acceptance speech for album of the year toward young women.

“As a fan of yours, this is some bullsh*t. You do not get to pick and choose when feminism benefits you,” said one.

Nevertheless, some rushed to defend her and thanked her for drawing attention to the cause.

In 60 countries and on seven continents across the world, protesters took to the streets to march against President Trump as part of the Women’s Marches. In London, close to 100,000 people marched, holding signs such as “p*ssy grabs back”, “dump Trump”, and “free Melania”.

A representative for Swift did not immediately respond to request for comment.