Willie Nelson Fights Discrimination – Against Dogs

Willie Nelson fights to end canine discrimination

KMazur/WireImage/Frank Gaglione/Getty

Willie Nelson wants the state of Ohio to repeal its law condoning one form of discrimination: canine profiling. The singer is speaking out in favor of Ohio House Bill 14, which would remove from the books a law that declares certain dog breeds inherently vicious and would strengthen associated laws targeting irresponsible dog owners.

Nelson, a dog lover who lends his famous name to the Best Friends Animal Society, has published a letter asking Ohio residents to contact their state senators to voice support for the bill, which has already passed in the House of Representatives. By current state law, pit bulls and pit bull mixes are automatically categorized as vicious, regardless of their behavior. "There are countless dogs deemed 'pit bulls' but actually are of unknown heritage who make wonderful family pets," Nelson writes. "Dogs, like people, are individuals and should each be judged on his/her own merits."

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Song Stories

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Sir Mix-a-Lot | 1992

While watching a Budweiser commercial during the Super Bowl, Sir Mix-a-Lot thought the skinny female models in the ad didn’t represent reality. So he wrote this ode to ample bottoms, featuring its famous to-the-point lyric: “I like big butts and I cannot lie.” MTV banished the video, featuring shaking booties and sexually suggestive fruit, to 9 p.m. or later. “I thought my career was over,” he told Rolling Stone. “Then I called Rick Rubin, and I told him the video was banned, and he was like, 'Great!' We sold another 2 million records.”

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