Yahoo Movies Ariana DeBose Declares ‘This Is the Time to Get in the Fight’ After Roe Repeal (Video)
On Thursday’s episode of “The Tonight Show,” Oscar winner Ariana DeBose talked with Jimmy Fallon about her fears — and hopes — following the repeal of Roe v. Wade and the dangerously uncertain legal landscape faced by women and, if right-wing Supreme Court justices like Clarence Thomas gets their way, LGBTQ people as well.
But she also urged people listening that “this is the time to get in the fight,” and as a start, to “make a difference at the local level” as part of the struggle for basic American rights. You can watch the clip above right now.
“We can talk a lot about how the Supreme Court has just waged war on women’s reproductive rights,” DeBose told Fallon. “But the reality is, Clarence Thomas was very clear on what his plan is. He’s not just coming for women. They already came for voting rights. They’re gonna continue. But they’re coming for marriage equality. And quite frankly, they’ll probably come for adoption rights by same-sex couples.” (She was referring to Thomas’ statement in the decision overturning Roe that suggested the court revisit past precedents that legalized contraception and same-sex marriage as well as nullified sodomy laws.)
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“So this is the time to get in the fight. And it starts on a local level,” said DeBose, who won an Oscar this year for Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story” remake. “So find ways to get involved. I personally because I — come on, I’m Black, I’m Afro-Latina, I’m a woman and I’m queer. My country is at war with me. And that’s hard. Oh my God that’s hard. But the only thing I can do is hold onto my joy and make a difference on a local level,” she said.
“So I’m trying to find the Abortion Funds in my community, that I can support. So I can help anyone with a uterus, whether that means getting them to a safe haven state, or in the states that don’t want to support them, how can we support them. So I want, and encourage folks to research, get involved. But do your part, because this is not about one set of rights, it’s about human rights,” she added.
“I’m sorry to be on a soap box, but I’m not sorry. I’m fired up,” DeBose continued. “Be fired up!” Fallon replied.
“You know what is a terrible analogy, but I like it? This is a time of planting seeds, right? Because seeds beget roots, and hopefully really healthy trees. We got a rotten ass tree called the Supreme Court and we gotta root it out,” she concluded. “So, do your part people.”
