Country singer Maren Morris raised more than $100,000 for transgender rights after Fox News host Tucker Carlson called her a “lunatic country music person” on his show last week.
Carlson made the comment in response to Morris’ criticism of anti-transgender remarks made last month by Brittany Aldean, the wife of country star Jason Aldean.
On Aug. 23, Brittany Aldean posted an Instagram video of herself doing her makeup along with a comment that stated, “I’d really like to thank my parents for not changing my gender when I went through my tomboy phase. I love this girly life.”
Her husband responded in a comment on the post, writing, “Lmao!! Im glad they didn’t too, cause you and I wouldn’t have worked out.”
Two days later, singer-songwriter Cassadee Pope criticized Brittany Aldean’s comments on social media.
“You’d think celebs with beauty brands would see the positives in including LGBTQ+ people in their messaging,” Pope wrote in a tweet. “But instead here we are, hearing someone compare their ‘tomboy phase’ to someone wanting to transition. Real nice.”
Morris supported Pope’s message, writing in a tweet, “It’s so easy to, like, not be a scumbag human? Sell your clip-ins and zip it, Insurrection Barbie.”
Brittany Aldean responded to the backlash later that day by doubling down. In a lengthy statement shared on her Instagram Stories, she wrote that “advocating for the genital mutilation of children under the disguise of love and calling it ‘gender affirming care’ is one of the worst evils,” according to Billboard.
She continued by comparing being transgender to one of her children wanting to be a dinosaur or a cat.
“Some parents want to be accepted by society so badly that they’re willing to make life-altering decisions for their children who aren’t old enough to fully comprehend the consequences of those actions,” she said.
On Sept. 1, the back-and-forth intensified when Jason Aldean’s public relations firm of 17 years, The GreenRoom, announced that it would be parting ways with the singer, though it didn’t say in its statement that the decision was related to his wife’s comments.
“Music has always been and remains The GreenRoom’s core focus, so we had to make the difficult decision after 17 years to step away from representing Jason,” The GreenRoom co-owner Tyne Parrish said in a statement to Billboard. “We aren’t the best people for the gig anymore, but will always be big fans of his music — he is one of the greatest live entertainers in country music.”
The GreenRoom has not returned NBC News’ request for additional comment.
Later that day, Brittany Aldean appeared on Carlson’s show, “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” to defend her comments. It was during that segment that Carlson described Morris as a “lunatic country music person.”
On Friday, Morris shared a screenshot from the show on Twitter with the caption “#NewProfilePic.”
She later shared a photo of a T-shirt with a link to her website. The T-shirt includes her name and “lunatic country music person” and then the phone number for Trans Lifeline, a peer-support and crisis hotline for transgender people. She said the proceeds for the shirt would be split between Trans Lifeline and the Transgender Media Program at GLAAD, an LGBTQ media advocacy group.
Just two hours later, Morris said the shirt had raised $63,000, and on Saturday, she said the total had surpassed $100,000.
Both the Trans Lifeline and GLAAD thanked Morris.
“Maren, huge thanks for your support of a world where trans people have all that we need to survive and thrive,” Trans Lifeline said in a tweet.
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This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
