This Free Speech Hypocrisy Is Off the Charts

Macklemore won’t back down. Not yet, at least.

The rapper is using his time as Ed Sheeran’s opening act to lecture audiences on the Israel-Palestinian divide.

Guess which side the rapper is taking?

“I wanted to stand up here on stages across America and say two words that are near and dear to my heart: Free Palestine.”

Macklemore is speaking out about his call to “Free Palestine,” which the rapper says is not a “criticism” of Jewish people:

“My message is for peace; love for all human beings to be treated with dignity, respect, and equality.”https://t.co/oXR5jhZJTH pic.twitter.com/0r5OYrFXbc

— Variety (@Variety) September 7, 2026

Sloganeering is the ultimate virtue signal. So is using a bully pulpit where no one can directly contradict you or your misinformation.

It’s hardly new in CelebrityVille, but the rapper’s speech got plenty of attention. Some want the musician booted from the tour. For now, Sheeran is playing the Silent Game.

That may not last, either.

The episode is noteworthy on a few levels. Why would Sheeran fans, who paid good money to see the superstar live, want a Middle East lecture from anyone, let alone Macklemore?

Will the rapper keep spouting anti-Israel rhetoric during the tour? And what must M.I.A. think of all of this?

Kid Cudi has fired M.I.A. from his tour after the rapper was booed on stage for saying she couldn’t play her 2010 song ‘Illygirl’ because of potential immigrants in the audience. https://t.co/P11WNmLYtd

— Entertainment Weekly (@EW) May 4, 2026

The British rapper got booted from Kid Cudi’s tour earlier this year for sharing less inflammatory but unabashedly right-leaning views on immigration from the stage.

She only got one chance to do so before Kid Cudi fired her. She’s currently suing him on free speech grounds.

The usual suspects (Legacy Media types and Hollywood celebrities) said nothing about M.I.A.’s free speech rights.

We’ll see who, if any, defends Macklemore moving forward. (It likely won’t be Pink)

The timing of the matter is … interesting … considering recent comments by Susan Sarandon.

The Oscar-winner, who refused to acknowledge the mass rapes that occurred on Oct. 7, said she’s been blacklisted by studios for her pro-Palestinian stance.

She said this while at the Venice Film Festival promoting her new film, “The Echo Chamber.”

Let that sink in for a moment.

The 79-year-old still works frequently. It’s possible that she lost some gigs for her strident views. That’s neither good nor healthy. Should other stars lose work for saying daffy things, or for being misinformed on any number of issues?

Slippery Slope 101.

Sarandon’s silence or blinding ignorance on other stars who have suffered for having their own opinions is deafening. Remember Gina Carano, who watched her career collapse for one clunky but well-intentioned social media post?

Enter Patricia Heaton.

The Emmy winner has worked steadily for decades, most notably on “Everybody Loves Raymond” and “The Middle.” She’s a conservative, but she doesn’t opine on politics and lets her work speak for her.

Still, she understands the entrenched biases facing right-leaning stars in Hollywood. She’s heard the stories firsthand at Friends of Abe meetings.

DEVELOPING: Hollywood actress Patricia Heaton revealed to Andrew Gold that she was inside of a secret elite network in Hollywood that operated on code words that made it possible Conservatism to exist in media, she says it actually was that bad during Obama.

Heaton: “You… pic.twitter.com/juIIHycMbV

— Dom Lucre | Breaker of Narratives (@dom_lucre) August 31, 2026

The secret group isn’t common knowledge, even though this site and a few others have discussed it over the years.

Liberal celebrities can shout their opinions from the rooftops without reprisals. That’s how it should be. But conservative artists risk professional blowback for doing anything of the kind.

And while a few select conservatives are allowed to opine and keep on acting – think Kelsey Grammer, Jon Voight and Tim Allen – many more stay silent for fear of repercussions.

Think Kevin Sorbo and James Woods as two of the worst examples of stars who got blacklisted for being on the Right.

These four performers, while different in many ways, suggest a very toxic culture when it comes to speech. Certain opinions are welcomed and protected.

Others? Not so much.

It would be nice if the Macklemores and Sarandons would, at the very least, acknowledge the issue and support their artistic peers for having the right to speak out without condemnation.

Chances are, that’s one virtual signal we’ll never hear.