Joan Jett Speaks Out in Support of Anti-ICE Protests

Joan Jett has never been an artist who stays quiet when something feels wrong. Across decades of music and public life, she’s built a reputation for speaking plainly, even when the subject makes people uncomfortable. That instinct surfaced again recently, far from home, during a live performance on the other side of the world.

While on tour in New Zealand, Joan Jett paused her set to address events unfolding in the United States. Her remarks centered on protests against ICE following the deaths of two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis, and they carried a sense of urgency that went beyond a typical onstage aside.

Rather than improvising, Jett read from a prepared statement, underscoring that this was something she had thought through carefully. The message was not about spectacle or provocation. It was about refusal—refusal to normalize violence, political spin, or the erosion of basic freedoms.

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Speaking out from abroad

Jett delivered her statement during a show in Wānaka, New Zealand, part of a Summer Concert Tour headlined by Iggy Pop. Addressing the crowd, she spoke candidly about her distress over what she described as daily horrors unfolding back home in America. The physical distance did not soften her words or dilute her concern.

She framed her remarks as a collective response, emphasizing that many people in the United States do not accept what is happening in cities like Minneapolis and St. Paul. Her language made it clear that this was not a fringe position, but one shared by communities across the country and beyond its borders.

Jett also extended her message outward, acknowledging international audiences and neighboring nations. By doing so, she placed the issue in a global context, suggesting that the consequences of U.S. policy reverberate well beyond its own borders.

“We don’t accept it”

At the core of Jett’s statement was a simple but forceful refrain: “We don’t accept it.” She spoke against brutality, dishonesty, and what she called the loss of life’s simplest pleasures—phrases that resonated as much emotionally as politically. The language was direct, stripped of slogans or rhetorical flourishes.

She also looked ahead, stressing that resistance is not a one-night gesture but an ongoing effort. Jett spoke about the work already being done and the work still to come, framing change as something that requires persistence rather than patience alone.

Ending on a note of resolve, she invoked the idea that progress is inevitable if people continue pushing. It was a rare moment of optimism grounded in action, not abstraction, and it earned a strong response from the crowd.

A wider chorus of musicians

Jett’s comments place her among a growing group of musicians who have publicly condemned ICE-related violence. Artists across genres have spoken out, turning concerts and public appearances into platforms for protest and solidarity.

In Minneapolis, Tom Morello hosted a Concert of Solidarity & Resistance at First Avenue, where Bruce Springsteen performed his anti-ICE song “Streets Of Minneapolis.” The performance reinforced the idea that music can still function as a rallying point rather than a retreat.

Springsteen’s remarks that night echoed Jett’s sentiment, emphasizing the streets—not institutions or online debates—as the place where democratic futures are shaped. Taken together, these moments suggest that for many artists, silence is no longer an option when the stakes feel this high.