Biden facing fire for having Lizzo at his $26M fundraiser

On March 28 (US), Former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton joined present-day President Joe Biden’s star-studded fundraiser, moderated by The Late Show host Stephen Colbert. Held at the Radio City Music Hall, the sold-out gathering reportedly raised over $26 million for Biden’s re-election campaign.
A-list performances by Hollywood stars set the mood for the record-setting New York City fundraiser. Trump eventually struck the guest list down as a coming together of “deranged Hollywood liberals.” Comedian and actress Mindy Kaling hosted the eye-popping event, with Lizzo, Queen Latifah, Cynthia Erivo, Ben Platt and Lea Michele participating as performers.
However, the electric ceremony wasn’t all glorious. Biden received hefty lambasting disapproval for bringing on the About Damn Time rapper to the NY event, among other reasons for tongue-lashing.
The more Lizzo-specific answer to the question is the ongoing sexual harassment lawsuit against the singer. Three of her former backup dancers filed the suit in August, accusing her of “creating a hostile, abusive work environment and making their working conditions intolerable.”
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Despite actively pushing a discourse about body positivity, the official documents allege that she “privately weight-shames her dancers.” The suit even accuses her of religious and racial harassment and several other allegations. After denying these claims, the Juice singer requested the Judge to toss the case aside. However, her motion was denied in February 2024.
The accusers’ (Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams and Noelle Rodriguez) attorney slammed the Democratic National Committee for hiring Lizzo to headline the ‘Three Presidents’ event. Ron Zambrona told NewsNation, “It’s shameful that Lizzo would be chosen to headline an event like this amid such egregious allegations.”
Social media isn’t mincing its words either. X (formerly Twitter) discussions brought up former Senate aide Tara Reade’s sexual assault allegations against Joe Biden in 2020. Bill Clinton has had his share of notorious controversies. Moreover, convicted con artist Larry Sinclair claimed to have had sexual liaisons with Brack Obama in 1999.
Internet users couldn’t help but trace the connections back to each president’s scandals in the past. One of them wrote: “There is a serial sexual predator on stage with sexual assault cases and allegations going back to the late 1970s…”
Another retorted: “Birds of a feather flock together!” A third tweet read, “Lizzo is the symbol of everything wrong in this country.”
While Biden, Obama and Clinton were at the celebrity-packed New York fundraiser, Trump attended the wake honouring the slain New York City police officer Jonathan Diller. The three-year NYPD veteran was tragically killed while halting a motorist on Monday. The former president, running for re-election, was reportedly invited to join the officer’s family. Yet a fraction of Twitterati wondered how Trump, who’d been charged with dozens of felonies, was welcomed to such an event in the first place.
While Trump is embroiled in several lawsuits of his own, social media couldn’t ignore the blatant contrast in the standpoints of the two front-running candidates. Some perceived this as a presumable photo op, but a huge number of supporters lauded him as the “People’s President.”
Biden was severely condemned for his other “priorities”. “This is happening as Biden hosts Hollywood Movies Stars,” wrote an X user.
Addressing a different point of view, Pro-Palestine protestors swarmed outside Biden’s fundraiser in New York. Some even punctuated the sold-out event inside the auditorium and shouted over the ongoing discussions.
“Shame on you, Joe Biden,” one of them yelled, referencing the president’s staunch support of Israel in the war against Hamas in Gaza.