Teen Ink

In 2003, the Dixie Chicks were one of the most popular pop and country bands of all time. Then, the night before the U.S. army invaded Iraq, they were on their European tour in London, when their lead singer, Natalie Maines, made the statement: “Just so you know, we’re on the good side with y’all. We do not want this war, this violence, and we’re ashamed that the President of the United States is from Texas.” This triggered a national controversy that would change their lives forever.

When the Dixie Chicks finally returned to America, their music was taken off the radio, their music sales were down, and they were no longer accepted in society. For their remark and belief against the president, the band received numerous death threats and hateful comments. One death threat in particular gave the date, time, and weapon that would be used to kill Natalie Maines. This experience caused the band to reflect back on the death threat by writing a song called “Not Ready to Make Nice”, which became their top hit.

This shows that even though one of the fundamentals of America is freedom of speech, entire freedom of speech is not fully accepted by the American people. Furthermore, for America to evolve as a country, all of the American people must accept one another for their beliefs.