Billie Eilish used her acceptance speech for the MLK Jr. Beloved Community Environmental Justice Award to draw attention to what she described as a serious deterioration in human rights, community safety, and environmental protection in the United States.
Accepting the award at the King Center at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Atlanta, Eilish read from a small piece of paper, saying she did not feel worthy of recognition at a time she described as a profound social crisis.
“Honestly, I don’t feel deserving, and it feels very strange to be celebrated for my work in environmental justice at a time when it feels less attainable than ever, given the state of our country and the world right now,” she said during the ceremony.
In the remainder of her speech, the singer outlined a series of developments she called deeply alarming.
“We are witnessing our neighbors being taken away, peaceful protesters being attacked and killed, our civil rights being stripped away, resources to combat the climate crisis being drained by fossil fuels and industrial animal agriculture that are destroying our planet, and access to food and healthcare becoming a privilege of the wealthy rather than a basic human right for all Americans,” Eilish stated.
She added that protecting the planet and local communities is no longer a priority for the current U.S. administration.
“And it’s really hard to celebrate when we don’t feel safe in our own homes or on our own streets,” she said.
Eilish’s speech followed earlier public backlash over her anti-ICE posts on Instagram, which the Department of Homeland Security criticized as “nonsensical rhetoric.”
Her social and environmental activism has previously been highlighted through a plan to donate $11.5 million to organizations focused on climate justice, reducing carbon pollution, and promoting equity in food access, through The Changemaker initiative tied to her “Hit Me Hard and Soft” tour
