PopUps: To Highlight Homophobia, Sam Smith Posts Anti-Gay 'Poem'
Out British soul singer Sam Smith wants his fans to know that even though it's 2015 - a year when the U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in all 50 states - he is still subjected to homophobia.
The "Omen" singer took to Instagram Tuesday to highlight that homophobia still exists today, posting a "poem" about him that is full of anti-gay rhetoric and gay slurs, The Daily Mail reports.
Smith, 23, said he was too "thick skinned" to let the hurtful message bother him but he wanted to put a spotlight on the issue by posting the poem (it's actually a now-deleted Instagram account with the username GaySamSmith), which was called "We Hate Faggot Smith."
He posted an image of the poem, adding in the caption, "This genuinely doesn't offend me, coz I'm way too tick [sic] skinned when it comes to this kind of shit. BUT I just wanted to share this with everyone, so you can see how homophobia is still SO PRESENT in our society!!"
This isn't the first time Smith has talked about dealing with homophobia. Earlier this year the Grammy Award-winner opened up about the time he was attacked for being gay when he first moved to London.
"When I moved to London I got punched in the neck walking back from work," he told the Sun. "It was definitely homophobic. I was on the phone speaking quite loudly and had pink headphones on so it was pretty clear I was gay."
He said his attackers used gay slurs while he was physically assaulted.
"A bunch of boys from a rival school would shout insults at me as I walked from my home to the train station," he said. "I remember walking to the station getting 'faggot' shouted at me all the time."
It was the most mortifying thing. Not so much for me. I knew these people were stupid, uneducated twits," Smith added.
Watch the music video for "Omen" below: