Last year, Fiona Apple skipped the Grammy awards—her pandemic album Fetch the Bolt Cutters won two of them—in order to bring attention to a surprising cause for an LA-based pop star: transparency and virtual access in Maryland courtrooms.
It wasn’t just a passing fixation. Wednesday night, Apple took to social media, begging fans to call two Maryland lawmakers to lobby to make virtual access to courtrooms, which had been allowed during the pandemic, a permanent thing.
This is crunch time. It isn’t just about Maryland but about the future of open courts throughout the country. MD has the opportunity to set the tone for transparency—an opportunity we can not afford to let pass by. Follow @courtwatchpg for more updates. pic.twitter.com/FvDNxOlkSA
— Keep Courts Virtual! (@courtwatchpg) March 17, 2022
In a Twitter video posted by CourtwatchPG, a grassroots organization that pushes for such transparency in local courtrooms, the indie artist asks that all “caring people”—even those who are phone-shy (Apple says she herself suffers from “phonephobia”)—pick up the phone and call Maryland house delegate Luke Clippinger and state senator William C. Smith, Jr.. The goal is to advance House Bill 647 and Senate Bill 469, in order to “keep our courts fair, open and transparent.”
Not sure what to say? Apple even provides a script. The cause has gained traction from Fiona Apple stans and criminal justice advocates alike:
Virtual court access ensures that the public has safe, affordable, and meaningful opportunities to observe their legal system at work. With greater public access to court comes greater transparency and accountability. pic.twitter.com/W6KtV8yXJ0
— Keep Courts Virtual! (@courtwatchpg) March 17, 2022
Fiona Apple is on fire right now. Asking you to join her in the fight for public virtual access to court in Maryland. Injustice happens in empty courtrooms. Explains how to call now & urge lawmakers to pass the law. Also this video is just the best. Watch: pic.twitter.com/XrqCnbibbH
— Scott Hechinger (@ScottHech) March 17, 2022
i wonder if fiona apple and i have ever listened to the same maryland court proceedings……..
— jenna SCOTT, eit (@jennaSageScott) March 17, 2022
I did this and the second number picked up – she was very nice!
(and now Fiona Apple loves me back) https://t.co/J1cJ2vzw7i— Nidhi Chanani (@nidhiart) March 17, 2022
Absolutely wild that, after damn near 2 decades of being a fan, Fiona Apple and I’s court public access concerns line up so well. https://t.co/WpKt3TvJx7
— 🍂BK🍂 (@BradKutner) March 17, 2022