Some Conservatives Are Pissed About Lizzo Twerking While Playing James Madison’s Crystal Flute From The 1800s
Last week, Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden took to Twitter to invite Lizzo to pop by the Library of Congress while she was in Washington D.C. for her tour. BOOOORRRRRIIIIIN- oh wait, the library has a historical flute collection? Which features a crystal flute owned by President James Madison in 1813? Cool! Especially for a famous flute enthusiast like Lizzo. So, Lizzo took Carla up on her offer, and this past Tuesday, she got to play the prized crystal flute at the library. Later that day, she surprised fans at her concert with a special guest: the flute! Both times Lizzo played the (magic?) crystal flute, she did some very light twerking, because why not? Afterward, everyone was very happy and chill, cuz history is neato, and the crystal flute is pretty. Not! Some people (*cough* conservatives) were très scandalized. And WAP-hater Ben Shapiro, who’s probably never even heard of the crystal flute before this week, was the head of this angry mob.
For context, here’s Lizzo RSVPing to Carla Hayden’s Twitter Invite:
IM COMING CARLA! AND IM PLAYIN THAT CRYSTAL FLUTE!!!!! https://t.co/aPcIthlqeo
— FOLLOW @YITTY (@lizzo) September 24, 2022
And footage of her playing at the concert and the Library of Congress:
NOBODY HAS EVER HEARD THIS FAMOUS CRYSTAL FLUTE BEFORE
NOW YOU HAVE
IM THE FIRST & ONLY PERSON TO EVER PLAY THIS PRESIDENTIAL 200-YEAR-OLD CRYSTAL FLUTE— THANK YOU @librarycongress ❤️ pic.twitter.com/VgXjpC49sO
— FOLLOW @YITTY (@lizzo) September 28, 2022
Immediately, people started complaining that Lizzo’s twerking was blasphemous to the flute and American history (which is, as we all know, sacred and perfect). Yesterday the Library of Congress tweeted out a defense, explaining that this was not a Kim Kardashian wearing Marilyn Monroe’s dress to the Met Gala situation:
For those concerned about the flute: Music Division curators made sure it could be played without damage. This sort of thing is not all that unusual, in fact. Some of the Library’s priceless instruments were donated with the stipulation that they remain functional & be played.
This morning, Ben Shapiro sensed that everybody wanted him to weigh in on this non-controversy, and tweeted that Lizzo twerking while playing the crystal flute was bad because… I’m not sure:
If all we had seen was the clip of Lizzo playing the flute in the halls of the Library of Congress while wearing a semi-modest outfit, everyone would have shrugged. But that's not the clip everyone championed as groundbreaking: it was the clip where she bragged about twerking.
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) September 29, 2022
Here’s a taste of some other scandalized pearl-clutchers:
The thing that is obvious but people don’t want to say is that this is about humiliating white people, about desecrating American history and heritage. That’s what you do when you’re a conqueror. Humiliate the conquered. pic.twitter.com/A7FCrOXhtf
— Pedro L. Gonzalez (@emeriticus) September 29, 2022
The Library of Congress really took out a 200-year old flute that belonged to James Madison just so Lizzo could twerk with it.
They degrade our history and then call you racist if you actually value it. https://t.co/i5cHjl5RXX
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) September 28, 2022
OK! Conversely, many Twitterers realized that this “outrage” was… um… totally fucking stupid and racist. A history teacher also provided some historical context as to why this was quite bad-ass:
A history teacher @antisocstudies explains the historical significance of @lizzo playing James Madison's 200-year-old crystal flute pic.twitter.com/FN1EuAdyGI
— Fifty Shades of Whey (@davenewworld_2) September 29, 2022
James Madison when he heard Lizzo was the first person to play his crystal flute pic.twitter.com/tBXsZPHcdE
— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) September 28, 2022
— Brandon Hackett (@brandonhackett) September 29, 2022
When asked to comment, the ghost of James Madison replied, “I’m in hell for owning slaves; what’s a Lizzo?”
Pics: Instagram