Erin Antoch | Staff Writer
It’s been almost two weeks since Meryl Streep delivered her speech upon winning the Cecil B. DeMille Award at the Golden Globes on January 8, but I still can’t shake the unsettled feeling of distaste I felt when I first heard it.
The 30-time nominee and highest award winning actor of all time gave a heartfelt monologue spanning seven minutes that focused on our political system— more specifically, our president-elect Donald Trump’s despicable mockery of a journalist with a disability that took place some months ago, which has been criticized many times since.
It wasn’t the fact that she provided political discussion that left me uneasy. To be honest, Streep’s comments were not unexpected. They weren’t ground breaking, they weren’t unique, they weren’t even, dare I say, original. But they also weren’t misplaced or uncalled for, either. Celebrities using their enormous platform to push agendas is not a new concept. Katy Perry used her massive fanbase to promote Hillary Clinton throughout the 2016 election; Nicki Minaj frequently uses her concerts as an opportunity to tell young women to stay in school; and when Leonardo DiCaprio won his first (long overdue) Oscar last year, he used his widely anticipated acceptance speech to talk about global warming and the issue of climate change. As many before her, Meryl used her platform to talk about our political issues. Not using the unique platforms or fan bases that comes with celebrity status— such as award shows— would be a missed opportunity to reach millions of people, talk about issues and spark activism.
20 million Americans watched the Golden Globes, which means 20 million Americans were exposed to political thought via Streep’s speech. There are many people in my life who don’t care to keep up with anything but the Kardashians, so an entertainment event that exposes those kinds of people to political commentary? By all means, go ahead. The more exposure to various points of view or opinions, the better.
The only issue I have with what happened at the Golden Globes is this: Donald Trump won the election. As of today, he will be the President of the United States. Nothing is going to change that. It isn’t a secret that this country is deeply divided, that 50 percent of Americans were upset with his victory: There are riots, boycotts, endless hashtags and more left-leaning articles than one could read in a lifetime. But no matter what you say, what you do, or what you boycott, Donald Trump will sit in the Oval Office as our 45th President.
If half of our country does not support our President, even going so far as to denounce his leadership at an event watched by 20 million citizens, why then would any other country take the US seriously or venture their support for our nation? What allies would we gain by holding hostility and anticipating the failure of our President? Don’t misinterpret this to mean that we should never speak out against our government, because that is entirely not what I am saying: It’s one thing to speak to policy that you are against– for example, the defunding of Planned Parenthood, the deportation of millions of people, the removal of Universal Healthcare– but it’s another thing entirely to speak out against our President as a leader, reminding people of past problems they’ve had, when it can do nothing but breed animosity and fuel flames of hate.
Before you paint me as a Trump sympathizer, I myself voted for Hillary Clinton and was greatly saddened when she lost. But I recognize the reality of the situation, the fact that nothing will change the trajectory of the presidency. Instead I try to focus on bringing to light policy I dislike and promoting counter policies, instead of trying to make the President-elect look even more unfit than he’s already done himself. I wouldn’t boycott his election, but I might attend a Planned Parenthood rally, because only one of those is up for debate.
Like Meryl, and so many other women, LGBTQ members, and people of color, I don’t support the disgusting scandals that Trump has in some sense glorified throughout his campaign. I denounce the idea that our country perpetuates sexual assault and invites hate to the political table. But November 9th has come and gone, and I accept that he is our president; and I am rooting for his success. Because what Americans aren’t realizing is that rooting for the failure of Donald Trump is rooting for the failure of America.
So my call to action is to try to change the policy, not the person. And hope the cabinet will consider taking away his Twitter.