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Aren't there more important issues to discuss?
By Nia Tipton — Written on Oct 13, 2021
Demi Lovato isn’t afraid to share her love of aliens after launching their series, “Unidentified with Demi Lovato,” on the streaming platform, Peacock.
Recently, the singer shared an encouragement to fans to stop using the term “alien” to refer to extraterrestrial life.
During an interview with Pedestrian TV, Lovato claimed that the word was offensive.
“I think that we have to stop calling them aliens because aliens is a derogatory term for anything. That's why I like to call them ETs!" Lovato exclaimed.
The four-part docuseries that premiered in September follows Lovato, their best friend Matthew Scott, and their sister Dallas, as they search for the truth regarding UFOs and other extraterrestrial life with help from experts.
Demi Lovato's criticism of the word 'alien' is missing the point.
Lovato has been vocal about being a believer in aliens and otherworldly beings for a long time, and claims that a show documenting their fascination and search seemed nothing but natural.
Though, their newest critique about how people refer to “aliens” has drawn some criticism over whether that term is actually offensive, and whether Lovato should be pouring their energy into advocating instead for the term “aliens” to not be used when speaking of immigrants.
Of course there are more important issues in the world, especially when it comes to immigration and the dehumanizing way they are treated.
The term “alien” is more offensive to migrants than it is when referring to non-human lifeforms that may or may not even exist.
By migrants being referred to as “aliens” they are essentially being compared to extraterrestrial life and ultimately being seen as less than human and not even human at all.
The term “alien” as well as other words like “illegal alien” and “illegal immigrant” are widely disrespectful words when referring to a population of actual human beings.
There have been many studies done that show the verbiage in which people refer to immigrants also influences their stance on immigration.
A 2010 Social Influence study found that the term “illegal alien” evokes greater prejudice against Mexican immigrants because the term is associated with “increased perceptions of threat.”
There was also previous research that showed people who hold negative perceptions of ethnic groups and use dehumanizing words to describe them, are more likely to support restricting immigration policies.
The term “alien” dates back to the 19th century when Congress passed a set of laws that later became known as the Alien and Sedition Acts.
Those new laws impacted immigrants coming from different countries into America who were trying to obtain citizenship but were often turned away and rejected.
Lovato could be channeling their energy into addressing issues immigrants face.
Over the last several years, the word “alien” has been used as a way to separate immigrants from the rest of society.
It’s been used to point them out as some kind of “other,” when in reality they are simply human beings trying to enter a country that can offer them a new life, along with refuge.
There is a lot of misconception when it comes to immigration and unauthorized immigrants that cross the borders, and the dehumanizing words people use don’t help.
For Lovato to have such passion when it comes to the word “alien” being used to describe extraterrestrial life could have easily been a conversation around the word being used to describe immigrants.
The stereotype is dangerous and harmful that erases the actual history of what America was supposedly built on.
For people like Demi Lovato, who have millions of people tuned into their show, it could’ve been an opportunity to shine a spotlight on such a disturbing part of this country.
Nia Tipton is a writer living in Brooklyn. She covers pop culture, social justice issues, and trending topics. Follow her on Instagram.