Jack Antonoff, the guitarist of the
American band fun, has encouraged homophobes to boycott the group's
shows.
Fun, which also includes lead vocalist
Nate Ruess and instrumentalist Andrew Dost, has been a vocal
supporter of gay rights, in particular the right to marry.
In an interview with Michigan gay
weekly Between
The Lines, Antonoff said as a celebrity he has a
responsibility to speak up.
“Absolutely,” Antonofff said.
“It's a really weird life. Public figures deserve privacy. They
don't deserve to be thrown into the fire just because they have an
audience. I mean, we're out here because we're artists, we're
songwriters. What I do is what I am and I would understand if someone
only wanted to put out what they're there to put out. But it's just
one of those complicated generations. Ten or 15 years ago it was a
little different because at that point we were only X amount of years
away from a learning curve of not really understanding what was going
on. But now, in 2013, we have all the information and we've seen the
effects of homophobia and we've seen the effects of denying citizens
rights. It's just a time where I don't think any of us have the
luxury to not stand up.”
Antonoff also brushed aside concerns of
offending gay rights opponents.
“We get asked, 'If you guys are gonna
be political, do you worry you'll be offending people who are coming
to your shows?' And the answer for us is, 'Well, if anyone has a
problem with us, then they're homophobic and hateful and we're glad
to not have them come to our shows.' [laughs]”
“We set up booths at our shows and
it's not like people are coming up slamming their fists down and
being like, 'Stop redefining the family,'” he added. “We never
get that. We get people coming up and saying, 'I don't really know
why this issue matters.'”
(Related: Lena
Dunham, Jack Antonoff waiting for gay marriage before engagement.)