More than 400 artists, including legendary Hollywood stars, joined the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) on Monday to defend the right to free speech in the United States in response to the suspension of comedian Jimmy Kimmel’s show.
In an open letter seeking public support, artists such as Ben Affleck, Jennifer Aniston, Robert De Niro, Selena Gomez, Tom Hanks, Ben Stiller, Meryl Streep and Kerry Washington warned that Americans “must never accept” government threats to our freedom of speech.
The letter comes five days after Kimmel’s show, one of the most popular on late-night television in the country, was suspended indefinitely by ABC because of comments he made about the murder of ultra-conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Kimmel’s cancellation came hours after Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr suggested that the government could take action against network affiliates that broadcast the comedian’s show.
Artists raise their voice for freedom of expression
The letter states that attempts to pressure artists, journalists and others with reprisals for their expressions “attack the essence” of what it means to live in a free country.
“Regardless of our political affiliation, or whether or not we participate in politics, we all love our country… We share the conviction that those in power should never silence our voices, because if it happens to one of us, it happens to all of us,” the letter reads.
Among the hundreds of signatories were Latino artists such as Pedro Pascal and Diego Luna.
Anthony D. Romero, executive director of the ACLU, compared the silencing of Kimmel and the pressure exerted on media outlets through lawsuits and threats to their licenses evoke McCarthyism, the period in the 1940s and 1950s when fear of Soviet communism fueled a campaign of political repression, whistleblowing and ideological control that stifled the arts world and American society in general.
“We must remember, however, that Senator (Joseph) McCarthy was finally neutralized once Americans mobilized and stood up to him. We must do the same today because, together, our voices are stronger and, together, we will fight to be heard,” he stressed, according to Agencia EFE reports.
Find out more at ‘QueOnnda.com’.
