Renovation Pros Chip And Joanna Gaines Still Aren’t Canceled, But Not For Lack Of Trying

Few home renovation pros reach success equivalent to the level that Chip and Joanna Gaines enjoy. The Waco-based pair became mega-popular thanks to their HGTV show “Fixer Upper.” Episodes featured Chip tackling construction projects for clients and Joanna painting everything white and deepening a nation’s  appreciation for shiplap walls. 

Renovation reality shows were common enough, but the Gaines’ show offered a somewhat different dream to viewers . Instead of capitalizing on the drama and mockery often showcased by other reality show hosts, this married pair demonstrated clear love for one another. The show followed their family as Chip and Joanna raised four children — with the couple eventually having a fifth child-on an idyllic, 40 acres of farmland in Texas, complete with cute baby goats and family game nights under the stars. People didn’t just want to watch Chip and Joanna — they wanted to be Chip and Joanna.

Unfortunately, anytime a couple with traditional values comes along and celebrates big family living or normalizes concepts like loving your spouse and going to church on Sundays, detractors appear to rip them apart. However, despite multiple attempts to cancel the Gaineses, the couple has actually gained popularity over time — in spite of their refusal to adapt to the mainstream narrative. They’ve had to defend themselves on a few occasions, but Chip and Joanna have mostly thrived by staying silent and continuing to live in truth instead of appeasing the woke mob. So far, it’s working. 

Critics first came after the Gaineses for attending a church that promoted traditional marriage between one man and one woman. BuzzFeed published an investigation into Antioch Community Church and its pastor, Jimmy Seibert, after he referred to the Gaineses as his “good friends” in 2016.

According to BuzzFeed, Seibert preached against same-sex marriage during a sermon in 2015 following the monumental Obergefell v. Hodges decision, which requires states to license marriages between two people of the same sex.

“This is a clear biblical admonition. So if someone were to say, ‘Marriage is defined in a different way,’ let me just say: They are wrong,” Seibert said in his sermon, per BuzzFeed. “God defined marriage, not you and I. God defined masculine and feminine, male and female, not you and I.” He went on to say that “homosexuality is a sin.”

The publication also noted that the HGTV show “Fixer Upper” had never featured any same-sex couples over the years, and as of this publication, they still haven’t. HGTV network reps were quick to clarify their stance on the issue, saying in a statement, “We don’t discriminate against members of the LGBT community in any of our shows. HGTV is proud to have a crystal clear, consistent record of including people from all walks of life in its series.”

This backlash prompted Chip and Joanna to make a rare, direct address to the public, which strived to defend and clarify their positions. Fans noticed that while their carefully worded statement avoided condemning gay people it did not condone gay marriage.

According to Good Housekeeping, Chip shared a statement on the couple’s website, Magnolia, which stated: “Joanna and I have personal convictions.” He continued: “One of them is this: we care about you for the simple fact that you are a person, our neighbor on planet earth. It’s not about what color your skin is, how much money you have in the bank, your political affiliation, sexual orientation, gender, nationality or faith.” The post has since been removed.

Joanna also addressed the situation while speaking with The Hollywood Reporter in 2021.

“The accusations that get thrown at you, like you’re a racist or you don’t like people in the LGBTQ community, that’s the stuff that really eats my lunch — because it’s so far from who we really are,” the 43-year-old, biracial mom of five said.

There was even more drama beyond the ire of the LGBT camp. In 2021, the Gaineses allegedly donated $1,000 to Chip’s sister, Shannon Braun, who was running for the Grapevine-Colleyville ISD School Board in Texas. The problem for some followers was that Braun was running on a campaign of eliminating critical race theory from schools. 

According to The Hill, Braun’s platform called CRT “the single most divisive threat” in education. 

“I will vote down anything and everything that further promotes critical race theory in our school district and actively work to remove all critical race theory,” she said in a video shared to her campaign Facebook page.

A lesser controversy occurred after Joanna found herself unexpectedly pregnant at 40. Her kids were all a little older, and she and Chip thought they were well past the baby stage. However, Joanna described the experience with joy and acceptance rather than with fear and regret.

“It was a total surprise. But when we found out, it solidified that it was the right decision to leave [‘Fixer Upper’] when we did,” she said in 2018 upon hearing the news, according to Today. The couple had already decided to step away from their hit show on HGTV to focus on their family and their thriving lifestyle brand, including a retail emporium in Waco. They would later relaunch “Fixer Upper” on their own cable network, Magnolia Network.

“I had been feeling a little emotional and crazy and thought, ‘Wow, this isn’t me,’” she told Country Living magazine. “Then all of a sudden I realized, ‘Hey, I remember this.’”

“When I saw the results of the test, my jaw dropped,” she continued. “Chip was in the driveway about to leave when I called him back and said, ‘We’re pregnant!’ He was so excited. We’re both just so excited.”

She went on to discuss how she’s open to God’s plan, even if she didn’t say that in so many words.

“I joke with my friends that I’m going to be that 45-year-old who’s pregnant,” she said. “Chip is such a kid at heart and we both love a big family. I’m open to whatever. I’m just having fun with it.”

Now their newest addition, Crew Gaines, is an adorable preschooler who has become a treasured addition to the family. She discussed how having young kids in her 40s has kept her feeling young.

“I feel younger than ever because I now see the world like Crew sees it,” she told People in 2020. “I’m very thankful.”

When your kids get older, you start adjusting the way you parent,” Joanna continued. “But when you have a toddler, it’s so different. You almost have to see the world in the way that they do.”

“When Crew is in the car with me, it’s always, ‘I see a sun, I see a tractor, I see a boat.’ He’s finding the simplest things, and in his mind it’s an amazing discovery, but to us it’s just stuff. When you look at things through the eyes of your children, it brings you back to that place of awe and wonder.”

Not everyone was on board with the Gaineses having five children. One CBC News reporter, Kristen Pyszczyk, suggested “shaming” celebrities for promoting large families and thus contributing to overpopulation.

“While having a child or five is a very personal choice, it’s also a choice that affects everyone who inhabits our planet,” the journalist wrote in the op-ed. “So while many people might find the backlash unwarranted, it’s actually a conversation we need to have in order to challenge our uncritical acceptance of the life-fulfillment-through-procreation story.”

“Shame is a powerful tool for changing behaviour: it’s how we introduce new and existing social conditions,” Pyszczyk continued. While she says Chip and Joanna are not the only ones who deserve scolding, she cited their pregnancy announcement as indicative of a larger problem. “So when people do irresponsible things like having five children, we absolutely need to be calling them out.”

Chip and Joanna Gaines have been able to take a small business and turn it into a cultural phenomenon just by being themselves. Their success is evident, despite the drama that has followed their journey and those who have tried to tear them down. Without an overtly political agenda, the pair has managed to promote traditional values, big families, and simple living.

The Left will probably keep trying to cancel them. Hopefully they never succeed. 

The views expressed in this opinion piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

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