Days after Britney Spears was allowed to testify at a conservatorship hearing for the first time and passionately demanded that the court restore her basic freedoms, her younger sister, Jamie Lynn Spears, is speaking out for the first time about her sister’s private life. In a series of Instagram Stories posted on June 28, Jamie Lynn stated that she chose not to speak publicly about Britney’s conservatorship struggles until now because she believed her sister should be the one in charge of her own narrative as #FreeBritney ebbed and flowed over the years. “The only reason I haven’t before is because I felt like until my sister was able to speak for herself and say what she felt like she needed to say publicly, it wasn’t my place and wasn’t the right thing to do,†Jamie Lynn explained. “But now that she’s very clearly spoken and said what she needed to say, I feel like I can follow her lead and say what I need to say.â€
At her hearing on June 23, Britney told the court that she found her conservatorship to be “abusive.†This was the first time in 13 years that she was allowed to speak publicly about the conservatorship, which has been under the supervision of her father, Jamie Spears. Among her long and harrowing testimony, Britney alleged that under her conservatorship she’s unable to get married, have more children, or remove her IUD. She also alleged that her father frequently forced her to perform while sick and requested Jamie to be removed as her conservator. Jamie Lynn continued:
It’s extremely clear since the day I was born I’ve only loved, adored, and supported my sister. This is my freakin’ big sister before any of this bullshit. I don’t care if she wants to run away to a rainforest and have a zillion babies in the middle of nowhere, or if she wants to come back and dominate the world like she has so many times before. Because I have nothing to gain or lose either way. This situation does not affect me either way because I’m only her sister who’s only concerned about her happiness. I’ve made a very conscious choice in my life to only participate in her life as her sister and an aunt to her boys.
In response to social-media criticism that demanded that she should’ve voiced her support for Britney in a public capacity sooner than 2021, Jamie Lynn had this to say:
Maybe I didn’t support her the way the public would like me to with a hashtag on a public platform, but I can assure you that I’ve supported my sister long before there was a hashtag, and I’ll support her long after. Know that. I mean, I’ve worked since I was 9 years old and paid my freakin’ bills since I was 10 years old. Not that I owe the public anything, because my sister knows I love and support her. That’s the only person I owe anything to. I’m not my family; I’m my own person. I’m speaking for myself. I’m so proud of her for using her voice. I’m so proud of her for requesting new council, like I told her to do many years ago. Oh, not on a big public platform, just in a personal conversation between two sisters. So, I’m very proud that she’s taken that step. If ending the conservatorship or flying to Mars or whatever the hell else she wants to do to be happy, I support that 100 percent, because I support my sister. I love my sister. Always have, always will. As long as she’s happy. So, let’s keep praying.
A day after her court hearing, Britney posted on Instagram to apologize to her fans for “pretending I’m ok.†The process to end her conservatorship is an ongoing process; the June 23 hearing did not initiate immediate change.