On Sunday, January 8, 2017, Meryl Streep took to the stage at the annual Golden Globes Awards to accept her Lifetime Actress award. Rightfully so, she was being recognized for her talent-filled performances in hundreds of roles during her long acting career. However, she did not simply thank her friends, her family, her co-workers and The Hollywood Foreign Press Association like many of her peers.
Instead, Meryl Streep used her few minutes of on-stage time to make a political statement against Donald Trump. While her choice in making a political statement was not incredibly surprising considering the current dissent in our country, what was surprising to hear were her viewpoints on how Hollywood stars are perceived and treated in the United States.
I would like, for a moment, Ms. Streep, to ask how precisely you view yourself and your peers as being outsiders in this great nation? Personally, I can’t remember a time when I was asked to visit the White House for dinner, nor have I ever had thousands of fans from around the world cheer my every performance. Never have I, or the majority of Americans, had the chance to attend award shows in custom-made dresses costing thousands of dollars. The average American does not make millions of dollars a year simply by acting. Yes, you have a talent and that should be celebrated. However, successful actors and actresses in America are not called the “Hollywood Elite” because you are outsiders. Quite the opposite, actually.
Our nation has arrived at the point where the general population is considered outsiders simply because they do not have large podiums to speak from or exorbitant sums of money to spend on making their message heard. The “Hollywood Elite” are not considered outsiders in our society, because they make up a majority of the inner rings of the people in our society who are considered important.
Being a true outsider is being a God-fearing Christian in any portion of the world in this day and time. In Syria, Christians are beheaded on a regular basis simply for professing their faith, yet the media hardly wants to draw attention to their plight and instead focuses on gossip related to Hollywood stars. Even in our nation that professes equality for all, being a Christian is highly frowned upon. Being an outspoken, public Christian is considered extremely offensive to many.
You see, Ms. Streep, it is not you and your circle of friends who are the outsiders in this nation, but the hard-working, everyday human beings. It is the teenager who reads their Bible in study halls at school; it is the homeless veteran who fought and gave everything for their nation; it is the family who pours their entire life into running a small business, just to get by.
The true outsiders are not the rich who can easily share their political opinions and suffer little personal consequence for their words, but rather, true outsiders are those who feel they have no voice.
Our nation is willing to accept all who share differing opinions – unless your opinions stem from Christianity, and if they do, you’d better keep your mouth shut if you don’t want to be dragged into court. At the mere mention of Jesus, mouths snap shut, doors slam closed and former friends walk away in disgust.
The unspoken rule in this nation is that Christians are allowed to practice their faith only if their worship is done silently and in private, without disrupting those around them who have conflicting views.
That, Ms. Streep, is what being an outsider feels like.