Billie Eilish slams ICE as she accepts MLK community honors in Atlanta

Singer-songwriter Billie Eilish slammed Immigration and Customs Enforcement and President Donald Trump's administration as she accepted an award on Saturday in Atlanta.

The Grammy-winning artist, 24, was honored Saturday at the 2026 MLK Jr. Beloved Community Awards at the Hyatt Regency, as she was presented with the 2026 MLK Jr. Beloved Community Environmental Justice Award.

The Los Angeles native was honored after she pledged last fall to donate $11.5 million to environmental organizations.

The Birds of a Feather vocalist, in accepting the honors from the King Center, said everything felt a bit out of place with the way she saw the world moving in the wrong direction.

'To be honest, I really don’t feel deserving,' she said, according to The Hollywood Reporter. 

Eilish said that it felt 'very strange to be celebrated for working towards environmental justice at a time where it feels less achievable than ever given the state of our country and the world right now.'

The Therefore I Am singer made specific reference to the death of 37-year-old Minnesota woman Renee Good following a confrontation with an ICE officer on January 7 in Minneapolis.

'We're seeing our neighbors being kidnapped, peaceful protesters being assaulted and murdered, our civil rights being stripped,' said Eilish.

Eilish earlier this month clashed with the Department of Homeland Security after calling ICE 'a terrorist group' via Instagram Stories following Good's death.

DHS assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Billboard in a statement on January 9 that the singer was misinformed about the incident.

'Clearly, Billie Eilish has not seen the newly released footage, which corroborates what DHS has stated all along - that this individual was impeding law enforcement and weaponized her vehicle in an attempt to kill or cause bodily harm to federal law enforcement,' McLaughlin said.

Eilish on Saturday said that 'resources to fight the climate crisis [were] being cut for fossil fuels and animal agriculture destroying our planet.'

The Everything I Wanted performer said she felt 'people's access to food and healthcare [were] becoming a privilege for the wealthy instead of a new basic human right for all Americans.'

Eilish, who was introduced by Wawa Gatheru, the founder of the organization Black Girl Environmentalist, said the felt the Trump administration had done a woeful job of preserving the environment. 

'It is very clear that protecting our planet and our communities is not a priority for this administration,' she said. 

Eilish said she found it 'really hard to celebrate that when we no longer feel safe in our own homes or in our streets.'

The planned $11.5 million donation was a result of monies collected from her Hit Me Hard and Soft tour's initiative, The Changemaker Program.

Eilish said that she did find solace in the good work done by fellow honorees Saturday, a group which included Oscar-winner Viola Davis, NFL alum Warrick Dunn and LeBron James' philanthropist mother Gloria James.

'I am so inspired by all the stories and the other honorees tonight and everyone in this room, and I’m grateful to everyone and for the huge community of people who are taking action centered on Dr. King’s message,' Eilish said.

Eilish mentioned her mother Maggie Baird, 66, in her speech, saying it was her parenting that led to the social activism she's displayed since becoming one of music's biggest breakout stars in recent years.

'I just want to thank my mom, both my parents, for raising me the way they did - I wouldn’t be doing any of this without you, Mom,' Eilish said. 

She added, 'I have this platform and I think it’s my responsibility to use it, so I feel like I’m just doing what anyone in my position should be doing.'