Dolly Legacy
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Standing With Everyone

Allyship for Black communities, LGBTQ+ folks, Tennessee, and working women

Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton in 1971
1968lyrics

Just Because I'm a Woman

Just because I'm a woman, don't think I don't know what you're up to.

women
Dolly Parton in 2023 from the Peace Like a River music video
2020advocacy

Black Lives Matter

Of course Black lives matter. Do we think our little white asses are the only ones that ma…

Black community
Dolly Parton performing on stage at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, 2005
2021philanthropy

Whitney Houston Royalties → Nashville

Dolly invested royalties from Whitney Houston's "I Will Always Love You" into a predominantly Black Nashville neighborhood.

Black community
Dolly Parton performing on the Blue Smoke World Tour in Knoxville, 2014
2017advocacy

LGBTQ+ Allyship

If you're the fine Christian that you think you are, why are you judging people? That's Go…

LGBTQ+
Dolly Parton performing at Lanxess Arena in Cologne, 2014
2023advocacy

"Cannot Help Being Trans"

They cannot help being trans any more than I can help being Dolly Parton.

LGBTQ+
Dolly Parton singing on stage during a Grand Ole Opry live broadcast in Nashville
2026personal

Dolly Parton Day

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee declared January 19 — Dolly's birthday and MLK Day in 2026 — as Dolly Parton Day.

TennesseeHome state
Dolly Parton with the Coat of Many Colors film crew at the Movieguide Awards
2019advocacy

Everybody Should Be Treated With Respect

I think everybody should be treated with respect.

LGBTQ+Black community
Carol Burnett embracing Dolly Parton in a publicity photograph from the variety-show era
1976career

Dolly! — A Diverse Variety Show

Her syndicated TV show featured Black artists at a time when country television was dominated by white male performers.

Black communityTennessee
Dolly Parton Experience exhibit at Dollywood
2024advocacy

Welcoming Beyoncé to Country

I'm a big fan of Beyoncé and very excited that she's done a country album.

Black communitycountry music
Dolly Parton performing at Dollywood in 2014
2018advocacy

Renaming Dixie Stampede

As soon as you realize that something is a problem, you should fix it.

Black communityTennessee
Panels of the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt on display
1989philanthropy

Funding an AIDS Documentary

Through Sandollar Productions, Dolly helped fund Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt — an Oscar-winning film about the AIDS Memorial Quilt.

LGBTQ+health
Dolly Parton at the National Press Club, Washington D.C.
1991lyrics

"Family" — Gay Relatives on a Country Album

But not a one is turned away when it's family.

LGBTQ+
Dolly Parton performing on the Blue Smoke World Tour in Knoxville, 2014
1999advocacy

Drag Queen Icon

I've always had these drag queens dress like me. And I even lost a Dolly Parton lookalike …

LGBTQ+
Dolly Parton with the Coat of Many Colors film crew at the Movieguide Awards
2019career

Heartstrings — A Gay Love Story

Her Netflix anthology series centered a gay couple navigating family rejection — and won a GLAAD Media Award.

LGBTQ+
Dolly Parton at the Peabody Awards, 2022

2022

2022 — still showing up for everyone, with the same sparkle and spine

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