After Meryl Steep's now iconic speech at the 2017 Golden Globes, she received backlash from a misguided few who were angered by her inspiring words of empathy and hope. They angrily proclaimed the Golden Globes were not an appropriate platform for her to discuss politics, and that she should just have "accepted the award and gotten off the stage." Here are some comments I have seen on news articles about the event:
Stick to playing dress up and make believe, Meryl.
Meryl, your only job in life is to entertain me. . that's it. You are only paid to entertain us, and you getting involved in political bullshit is not what we pay for. Keep your opinions to yourself. Shut up, do your job, and stop expressing your opinions. You don't get to have those.These quotes are the exact same kind of vitriol spewed at the actors of Hamilton after they politely addressed Vice President-Elect Mike Pence after a performance:
Your job was to perform in a play, not FORCE people in the audience to sit and listen to your one-sided opinions. The audience freely took the time and effort to come to the theater, paid good money to see your play, sat in their seats and suddenly and without warning your cast members surprised and tricked everyone by stating your political opinions ...
One particularly disgusting comment on Hamilton's Facebook page, which has since been taken down, stated that actors should not do anything except act, that they have no purpose in life except to perform for strangers, that they are pitiful creatures who live in a bubble and are deluded enough to think themselves queens and kings in our modern world because of their mediocre talent in an overrated craft. He said, "dance monkeys dance."
I will never forget reading that review. I will never forget going to a theatre class the next day and seeing all of my fellow students looking incredibly discouraged yet simultaneously furious and ready to engage.
How else are you supposed to feel when someone diminishes your entire existence to entertainment? How else are you supposed to react when someone tells you you are not allowed to do literally anything else except your job?
Would the individuals in the comment section like to be reduced to their jobs? Would you want to be told the only thing you are good for is to answer phone calls or write management reports or work on taxes?
Does that make any sense? No. So why would anyone say that about actors?
Actors are artists, and art is what keeps life pleasant. Without actors, without artists, without graphic designers, without authors, without singers, without musicians, without creators, life would be dull. We would not have movies. We would not have books. We would not have music. We would not have producers for broadcast sports. We would not have aesthetically please furniture or innovative architecture. We would not have beautiful makeup or clothing.
Life would be significantly less pleasurable. And what is the point of life if we are not happy?
People need to recognize just how important artists are in our world. Studies show that happiness and creativity go hand-in-hand.
But artists and creators are people first. They are not robots specifically made to provide entertainment to others. They have feelings, they have relationships with other people, they have important lives outside their art. Just as you do. Just as I do. A person's worth is more than their job--as important as art is, it is not the most important aspect of an artist.
We need to value art more, and we need to value artists more. We need to value people more beyond their capacity to support capitalism.
