Actress Kristen Bell defended herself and other politically-outspoken celebrities in an interview Monday, saying that rather than remain quiet about their political views, stars should use their large audiences and platforms to speak up.
In an interview with The Wrap CEO Sharon Waxman at the BE Conference in Austin, Waxman asked the Good Place star to comment on the “pushback” that celebrities receive when they air their political opinions.
“So I’m not a citizen anymore because I’m an actor? F*ck that,” Bell replied. “I’m a citizen of the United States, I’m allowed to say what I want to say.”
“I’m very lucky to have a platform; I use it responsibly. Some people don’t. A lot of people do,” the 36-year-old actress continued. “But just because I have followers on Twitter doesn’t mean that I’m any less allowed to share what I believe.”
Bell added that she thinks people “should be talking about what they believe.”
“I’m a citizen of the United States of America, so I’m allowed to state my opinions, even if it’s on social media,” she added.
Bell has indeed been outspoken about political issues important to her on her, both on her social media accounts and off. On Twitter Monday, the Frozen star shared an article in the Los Angeles Times which reported that California had joined in the federal lawsuit to block President Donald Trump’s executive order on immigration, and the actress has previously commented on GOP efforts to repeal and replace Obamacare.
But Bell has also engaged in civic activism away from the keyboard; in July, she joined dozens of her fellow Broadway stars at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia to perform the 1965 Hal David/Burt Bacharach hit “What the World Needs Now is Love” in a tribute to victims of gun violence.
Bell is set to appear next in the big-screen adaptation of CHiPS, due out in theaters later this month.
Follow Daniel Nussbaum on Twitter: @dznussbaum
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