This week has been packed with news. Setting aside the latest absurdities from the White House and Trump's efforts to rename Lake Ontario, the saddest news was the passing of one of the LGBTQ+ community's most vocal allies.
Dolly Parton, the singer, songwriter and philanthropist whose warmth reached far beyond the world of country music, has died at the age of 80. Her family announced that she passed away peacefully in Nashville on Tuesday 25 August, after a brief battle with cancer.
The tributes since have come from everywhere, which is fitting for a woman who seemed to belong to everyone. But queer people have a particular claim on her, and a particular grief this week.
Parton has been important to LGBTQ+ people because of what she refused to do. A woman of deep Christian faith, raised in the mountains of East Tennessee and beloved by an audience not always known for its warmth toward queer lives, she never once used her platform to shame us. Where others in her position hedged or stayed silent, she was plain: she loved everybody. She spoke openly about her gay and trans fans with affection rather than tolerance, and she made clear across decades that judgement was God's business and not hers.
Even in death, Dolly Parton's unifying power has brought together people from all walks of life. Her death prompted Barack Obama and Donald Trump to praise the same person and agree that this is a great loss. She unites queer people, their allies, and conservatives with opposing views. She bridges generations. This is something that every politician talks about, but very few achieve.
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