Clairo had an unexpected guest for fans on Saturday night at Coachella: Just before her set began, Bernie Sanders came out for a moment of political activism in the desert. The Vermont Senator, who was in California for an anti-oligarchy rally earlier in the day, encouraged the crowd to fight for the country, warning of the dire consequences the country faces if people remain apathetic.
Rep. Maxwell Alejandro Frost came onstage first to introduce Sanders. “We’re living in some crazy times, and because of that, I’m here to introduce someone very special,” he said before welcoming Sanders. Sanders thanked him, saying, ““The youngest member [of Congress] — and in my view — one of the best members,” as the two lifted their hands up together.
Then, Sanders dove into a serious political speech, lambasting the Trump administration, Elon Musk, and the current state of the nation. “This country faces some very difficult challenges,” he said. “The future of what happens to America is dependent upon your generation. Now, you can turn away and ignore what goes on but if you do that, you do it on your own peril. We need you to stand up and fight for justice, to fight for economic justice, racial justice and social justice.”
He spoke forcefully against the current administration’s agenda and decisions. “Now, we’ve got a president of the United States…” Sanders started to say, and was quickly met with boos as people recognized that he was talking about Trump. “I agree,” he told the crowd, the continued: “He thinks that climate change is a hoax. He is dangerously wrong, and you and I are going to hav to stand up to the fossil fuel industry and tell them to stop destroying this planet.”
After encouraging fans to demand better healthcare and economic opportunities, he introduced Clairo and shouted out her own social justice work. “I’m here because Clairo has used her prominence to fight for women’s rights, to try to end the terrible, brutal war in Gaza, where thousands of women and children are being killed,” he said. “So I want to thank Clairo not only for being in a great band, but for the great work she is doing.”
Earlier in the day, Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez hosted a Fighting Oligarchy free concert with Neil Young, Maggie Rogers, and Joan Baez that was dubbed “Bernie-chella.” He spoke to Rolling Stone in late February about taking down Trump and what it will take to create long-lasting change to this country.
Clairo has long supported Bernie, sharing that he chose him in the Democratic primaries back in 2020. She’s also been vocal about Trump. On the day of Trump’s inauguration, Clairo made headlines after she tweeted, “Witchcraft on Trump ASAP!” after expressing her distaste for the politician many times before. After he won the election, she shared her anger about the changes that would come to the country.
““I’m full of so much sadness and rage today… I’m so fucing tired of people talking about fucing bodies,” she said at the time. “You’re a fucking weirdo if you want to make a decision about my fucking body. It’s really heavy on my heart today.”
This week, Global Inheritance hosted a panel at the Coachella campgrounds about building grassroots movements with Tennessee State Rep Justin Jones and Gen Z congressman Maxwell Frost, who spoke about their experiences being activated by the gun violence issues affecting the country.
