WEBVTT - We Won't Be Shamed Into Silence 0:00:11.760 --> 0:00:14.560 Good morning, peeps, and welcome to OKF Daily with me 0:00:14.720 --> 0:00:18.759 your girl, Danielle Moody pre recording from the Home Bunker. Folks, 0:00:18.800 --> 0:00:21.840 it is my birthday, so I am taking a few 0:00:22.079 --> 0:00:27.720 days off for some rest and realignment, but I'm very 0:00:27.760 --> 0:00:30.720 happy to leave you with some episodes that I have 0:00:30.920 --> 0:00:35.400 pre recorded. The episode coming up today is with actor 0:00:35.600 --> 0:00:38.800 and the chair of the Glisten Board, Wilson Cruz, who 0:00:38.840 --> 0:00:42.000 is also a friend of mine. He is an LGBTQ 0:00:42.400 --> 0:00:47.360 friggin icon whose first portrayal of a queer character on 0:00:47.440 --> 0:00:50.720 television was in the nineties with My So Called Life. 0:00:50.960 --> 0:00:53.760 If you remember that show with Claire Danes and her 0:00:53.800 --> 0:00:58.320 best friend Ricky was played by Wilson Cruz. And so 0:00:58.400 --> 0:01:01.320 Wilson has spent his career we are not only on 0:01:01.360 --> 0:01:05.800 the screen but also in c suite working to advance 0:01:05.880 --> 0:01:10.240 representation for LGBTQ people and help our youth. And so 0:01:10.319 --> 0:01:12.800 I'm so excited to welcome him to wok F for 0:01:12.959 --> 0:01:17.640 this really insightful conversation. We pre recorded this so as 0:01:17.760 --> 0:01:20.280 of the time that you're listening to this, the strike, 0:01:21.080 --> 0:01:24.880 the longest strike for actors, tentatively has reached a deal. 0:01:25.760 --> 0:01:28.480 So in this conversation, we are still speaking about the 0:01:28.520 --> 0:01:31.840 strike because it was still going on when we recorded 0:01:31.920 --> 0:01:34.880 the show. So I hope that you enjoyed this episode. 0:01:35.000 --> 0:01:42.240 Coming up next, folks, I am so very excited to 0:01:42.720 --> 0:01:46.040 welcome to woke f Daily. Just oh, I don't know 0:01:46.319 --> 0:01:53.480 an icon, an actor and activists and all around absolute 0:01:53.760 --> 0:02:00.200 bad ass Wilson Cruz, who I have known, had the 0:02:00.280 --> 0:02:05.920 pleasure of knowing for several years now. Wilson, We've watched 0:02:05.960 --> 0:02:09.280 you on Star Trek, We've watched you on and so 0:02:09.480 --> 0:02:13.240 many shows. We've watched you get Vanguard Awards for your 0:02:13.280 --> 0:02:18.680 activism as an LGBTQ activist, and now you are also 0:02:20.000 --> 0:02:21.720 I don't know how you do it, but are also 0:02:21.760 --> 0:02:27.000 the board chair at Glisten Right, an organization that seeks 0:02:27.040 --> 0:02:33.000 to provide curriculum, books, information on LGBTQ youth to our 0:02:33.040 --> 0:02:39.000 schools to create better, more compassionate global citizens. I want 0:02:39.000 --> 0:02:42.760 to start off by asking, in the context of all 0:02:43.120 --> 0:02:47.280 the places we are right now, living in between all 0:02:47.320 --> 0:02:50.960 of these multiple dimensions of violence and grief and vacillating, 0:02:51.280 --> 0:02:54.920 how are you? How are you doing well? 0:02:54.960 --> 0:02:57.639 First of all, thank you for for having me here. 0:02:58.200 --> 0:03:04.040 I love seeing your faith How am I? I am? 0:03:06.320 --> 0:03:10.400 I am well because I really believe we're going to 0:03:10.480 --> 0:03:12.400 get through this. We're going to get to the other 0:03:12.440 --> 0:03:14.120 side of this. It's not going to be easy, but 0:03:14.560 --> 0:03:16.680 I'm well, you know, I do feel like the world 0:03:16.720 --> 0:03:20.079 is on fire, ye and I'm getting a tan from it. 0:03:20.320 --> 0:03:22.400 But I'm grabbing a hose. You know. We all need 0:03:22.440 --> 0:03:24.320 to grab a hose and do what we can and 0:03:24.360 --> 0:03:26.200 put out the fire where we can, where we can 0:03:26.520 --> 0:03:29.960 right and listen, is the place where I've chosen to 0:03:30.160 --> 0:03:32.280 put out that I've chosen to put out this fire 0:03:32.400 --> 0:03:34.760 or or help put out this fire? How do I 0:03:34.800 --> 0:03:36.480 do it? I do it because I'm not doing it 0:03:36.520 --> 0:03:40.720 by myself. I am part of a dynamic leadership, a 0:03:40.720 --> 0:03:44.320 new leadership team at Glisten, with Alamara Jones as my 0:03:44.400 --> 0:03:47.120 vice chair and with Melanie Williamn Jaggers as our new 0:03:47.120 --> 0:03:52.120 executive director. I am here to support them really yeah, 0:03:52.160 --> 0:03:56.400 to make to make it possible to get the resources 0:03:56.440 --> 0:03:59.280 this organization needs to do its important work. That's I 0:03:59.600 --> 0:04:04.160 see my self as you know, the catcher right on 0:04:04.280 --> 0:04:09.320 the team, and I have such faith in their abilities 0:04:09.320 --> 0:04:13.000 and the abilities of this staff, and that I feel 0:04:13.000 --> 0:04:17.560 really confident that We've seen this in terms of schools 0:04:17.600 --> 0:04:20.600 and and the sin stream that we're seeing with book 0:04:20.640 --> 0:04:23.160 bands and stuff like that. We've seen this play before. 0:04:23.680 --> 0:04:26.359 We know how to deal with it. This is a 0:04:26.440 --> 0:04:31.919 louder contingent for sure, But there I still believe that 0:04:31.960 --> 0:04:34.760 they are the minority. They just happen to be a 0:04:34.839 --> 0:04:38.680 really loud one. The job of Listen is to give 0:04:38.720 --> 0:04:42.479 them the resource, give our team, give our our kids, 0:04:42.600 --> 0:04:47.919 our our parents, the teachers, our supportive teachers, administration, school districts, 0:04:47.920 --> 0:04:50.600 the resources they need, the tools they need to combat 0:04:50.920 --> 0:04:52.680 all of these lies, because that's what they are. There 0:04:52.680 --> 0:04:57.080 are lives, and we're here to provide the help and 0:04:57.120 --> 0:05:01.239 the resources and tools to fight back. So that gives 0:05:01.240 --> 0:05:08.000 me great confidence and it soothes my weary soul when 0:05:08.000 --> 0:05:10.200 I when I get worked up. 0:05:11.200 --> 0:05:15.600 Yeah, you know, I will say that it is so important, 0:05:16.720 --> 0:05:21.920 I think, particularly for young queer people to see successful 0:05:23.000 --> 0:05:27.400 whole queer adults right and from color, you know, of 0:05:27.480 --> 0:05:32.159 color of color in particular, and I think that often 0:05:32.600 --> 0:05:36.479 what we are bombarded with, what those youth are bombarded with, 0:05:36.560 --> 0:05:39.479 are all of the statistics about why they're not going 0:05:39.560 --> 0:05:43.240 to succeed, why they will die young, why the world 0:05:43.320 --> 0:05:46.360 is against them, and so as somebody that has been 0:05:46.400 --> 0:05:49.760 in the spotlight and has been out in the spotlight 0:05:49.880 --> 0:05:54.840 as a gay man of color, who's you know what 0:05:54.920 --> 0:05:58.920 your breakout character, my soul called life would have been 0:05:58.960 --> 0:06:03.200 banned probably that that that your your your Ricky would 0:06:03.240 --> 0:06:05.840 have been banned. That show would have been banned and 0:06:06.000 --> 0:06:10.440 it had aired not in the nineties, but today. That 0:06:10.600 --> 0:06:16.560 gave so many young queer people the opportunity to see themselves. 0:06:17.080 --> 0:06:21.400 You know, what do you think, how do you help 0:06:22.080 --> 0:06:26.600 provide that light that is needed for our lgbt Q 0:06:27.040 --> 0:06:31.560 kids of color in particular that are at the intersection 0:06:32.080 --> 0:06:33.159 battling so much. 0:06:35.839 --> 0:06:38.719 You know, I think it's really important right now, in 0:06:38.760 --> 0:06:44.479 this moment when there's you know, these high decibel screams 0:06:44.520 --> 0:06:51.560 from the MAGA, write that our students see us standing 0:06:51.640 --> 0:06:57.080 up for them, that we adults rise up, if you will, 0:06:57.240 --> 0:07:02.280 to borrow the phrase from Gliston's campaign, that campaign is important. 0:07:02.760 --> 0:07:06.000 That it's important that governors and mayors all across this 0:07:06.080 --> 0:07:10.920 country are declaring that they're pledging the to be supportive 0:07:10.960 --> 0:07:15.000 of LGBTQ plus students because the noise that they're hearing 0:07:15.160 --> 0:07:18.239 from the other side feels like it's the only story 0:07:18.720 --> 0:07:20.320 and they need to see that the other side of 0:07:20.360 --> 0:07:23.440 the story is that there is an entire community of 0:07:23.560 --> 0:07:28.680 LGBTQ plus adults and allies who are fighting for the right, 0:07:29.400 --> 0:07:32.040 for their right to live up to their potential. That's 0:07:32.040 --> 0:07:35.560 all we're asking. We're not asking for anything special. We're 0:07:35.560 --> 0:07:38.240 asking for these students to be able to go to 0:07:38.320 --> 0:07:41.280 school and to learn in order to be great citizens. 0:07:41.880 --> 0:07:44.880 It's no mistake. It's not an accident that these book 0:07:44.920 --> 0:07:49.360 bands and the censorings started in earnest right around the 0:07:49.360 --> 0:07:53.120 time that the sixteen nineteen project came out, because the 0:07:53.160 --> 0:07:57.040 front lines of our movement and of the fight is 0:07:57.120 --> 0:07:59.960 in our schools. Because if they can control what we learn, 0:08:00.240 --> 0:08:03.120 if they can control what these students learn, they can 0:08:03.160 --> 0:08:08.080 control everything. They can control how they see themselves, they 0:08:08.160 --> 0:08:11.160 can control how other people see them. If you don't 0:08:11.200 --> 0:08:15.080 have LGBTQ plus people in your history in the curriculum 0:08:15.080 --> 0:08:18.240 that you're teaching, it's going to be easy to dehumanize them, 0:08:18.680 --> 0:08:23.160 it's going to be easy to dismiss them. Students need 0:08:23.200 --> 0:08:27.200 to see them themselves mirrored in the curriculum that they 0:08:27.240 --> 0:08:32.160 have at school, and so do straight students. Straight students 0:08:32.200 --> 0:08:38.800 need to see LGBTQ plus trans people sist. Straight people 0:08:38.840 --> 0:08:41.880 need to see that too, because they gain empathy, they 0:08:41.920 --> 0:08:44.520 gain understanding about who we are in our movement, and 0:08:44.559 --> 0:08:47.400 so then it's harder to demonize us, do you understand. 0:08:47.480 --> 0:08:51.199 So the work that Glisten does is really about protecting 0:08:51.400 --> 0:09:01.000 our society, our country, our democracy from ignorance and from hate. 0:09:01.520 --> 0:09:03.280 I talk, you know, I tell people all the time, 0:09:03.360 --> 0:09:06.520 what can we do to to help our movement right now? 0:09:06.960 --> 0:09:09.800 Ensure that we continue to have one continue that we 0:09:09.840 --> 0:09:13.400 continue to have uh people within this community who are 0:09:13.440 --> 0:09:17.600 able to be out and loud and visible. That's that's 0:09:18.000 --> 0:09:21.600 we're raising these kids today to be able to be 0:09:21.760 --> 0:09:29.040 put uh great citizens and active in our democracy. And 0:09:29.080 --> 0:09:33.640 we're raising straight cisgender people to understand and and and 0:09:34.760 --> 0:09:41.439 accept and support and and understand that you know, we 0:09:41.520 --> 0:09:45.320 are a valuable part of this society. So the work 0:09:45.320 --> 0:09:48.160 that Goeston does is vital, uh you know, and it 0:09:48.320 --> 0:09:51.960 reaches the blast radius is enormous. 0:09:52.000 --> 0:09:56.280 You know, you have been in this movement and on 0:09:56.320 --> 0:10:01.960 the front lines for so long. And what do you see, Wilson, 0:10:02.000 --> 0:10:07.080 that is different about this time this moment, both in 0:10:07.160 --> 0:10:11.640 its affirmative right, both in the tools that we didn't 0:10:11.679 --> 0:10:16.680 have right ten years ago, twenty years ago, but also 0:10:16.960 --> 0:10:19.840 in the obstacles that we are facing. 0:10:22.000 --> 0:10:27.960 You know, the reason why we are seeing such an 0:10:28.160 --> 0:10:33.400 enormous backlash to our community, to us, to an entire 0:10:33.559 --> 0:10:37.400 group of human beings, is because of the success that 0:10:37.440 --> 0:10:41.760 we have seen in the last forty years. Yeah, right, 0:10:43.760 --> 0:10:48.600 people came out in the nineties, people fought back against 0:10:48.720 --> 0:10:50.880 you know, the fact that nobody was carrying a damn 0:10:50.880 --> 0:10:56.120 about who was dying of aides. We passed marriage. We 0:10:56.160 --> 0:11:04.200 have an incredible visibility in our society. This moment is 0:11:05.080 --> 0:11:14.440 entirely a response to that. And how it's different is 0:11:16.280 --> 0:11:16.920 Donald Trump. 0:11:18.000 --> 0:11:24.439 Yeah, and the hate that he's unleashed and the permission 0:11:24.520 --> 0:11:29.280 that he's given people to be their least selves, their 0:11:29.320 --> 0:11:30.360 worst selves. 0:11:30.800 --> 0:11:41.000 Two allow people to humanize an entire multiple communities, to 0:11:41.080 --> 0:11:48.200 make it okay to hate, to put racist and white 0:11:48.240 --> 0:11:55.760 supremacists and homophobes and all of these people on equal 0:11:55.800 --> 0:12:00.520 footing with people who are doing good in the world, 0:12:00.920 --> 0:12:07.920 and showed love and educating people on why it's important 0:12:07.920 --> 0:12:10.320 for us to understand and value the ways that we 0:12:10.360 --> 0:12:13.679 are different. That that's part of being a part of 0:12:13.720 --> 0:12:16.560 the human race and part of being a society of 0:12:16.600 --> 0:12:21.920 a government that actually functions. So it's louder. I mean 0:12:21.960 --> 0:12:23.920 I also, you know, I just saw a few weeks 0:12:23.960 --> 0:12:29.000 ago the Judy Bloom documentary where she goes in detail 0:12:29.040 --> 0:12:32.040 about her experience during the book bands during the Reagan years, 0:12:32.480 --> 0:12:35.120 and you listen to that language, and it is the 0:12:35.240 --> 0:12:39.760 exact same language being used today, but it was about 0:12:39.840 --> 0:12:44.840 it was more about like you know, straight sex and 0:12:44.960 --> 0:12:48.360 teen books, and you know, they didn't want they didn't 0:12:48.440 --> 0:12:51.360 want us to know about ourselves. Right now they are 0:12:51.440 --> 0:12:53.960 our body to know our bodies, and now they don't 0:12:53.960 --> 0:12:56.960 want us to know about anybody else's different experience. Right, 0:12:57.440 --> 0:13:06.040 So it's the same bulk, and it's just louder. But 0:13:06.160 --> 0:13:08.720 I truly believe that it's a minority of people. I 0:13:08.800 --> 0:13:13.200 really do. I just think they're louder. And you know, 0:13:15.880 --> 0:13:25.160 there is such a fear of cancelation that this is 0:13:25.200 --> 0:13:28.679 different too. Right, So now you have people who really 0:13:28.720 --> 0:13:31.720 would want to stand up. I'm thinking about like corporations 0:13:31.720 --> 0:13:36.320 and allies who have historically stood with us and now 0:13:36.320 --> 0:13:44.000 are fearful, ye of speaking because they're afraid of the backlash. 0:13:44.120 --> 0:13:47.120 But My message to them is, you know, this is 0:13:47.160 --> 0:13:49.960 when we need you the most. We don't need we 0:13:49.960 --> 0:13:51.880 don't need you as much when we're when we're doing 0:13:51.920 --> 0:13:56.440 well right like that's easy. We need you when we're 0:13:56.440 --> 0:14:02.600 being attacked. We need corporations and leaders and adults and 0:14:02.720 --> 0:14:10.079 teachers and administrations and school boards to stand up against 0:14:10.120 --> 0:14:14.160 this ignorance, because we all know that it's ignorance, you know. 0:14:14.559 --> 0:14:21.680 So I urge people to use their voices at this 0:14:21.840 --> 0:14:25.240 time because it's the only way we're going to be 0:14:25.240 --> 0:14:27.560 able to get through it. We have to be vhicle. 0:14:28.000 --> 0:14:30.640 We have to educate ourselves. You know. Glisten has a 0:14:30.760 --> 0:14:36.160 navigator a map on our website glisten dot org. You 0:14:36.200 --> 0:14:39.680 can go on this map and you can click on 0:14:39.720 --> 0:14:45.400 your state and you can actually see the climate of 0:14:45.440 --> 0:14:49.160 your school system in your state, the laws that are 0:14:49.560 --> 0:14:53.160 that we need pass there, the laws that have been 0:14:53.240 --> 0:14:56.440 passed there in order to oppress us that we need 0:14:56.480 --> 0:15:00.000 to fight back over. You know, you can educate yourself 0:15:00.040 --> 0:15:05.600 and find ways to do something about it on this website. 0:15:06.000 --> 0:15:09.080 That's our that's part of our job, and we urge 0:15:09.080 --> 0:15:12.520 you to sign the pledge to rise up for LGBTQ. 0:15:12.640 --> 0:15:15.320 Plus students because it matters, you know, when when the 0:15:16.800 --> 0:15:19.320 when they don't say gay bills came out. One of 0:15:19.360 --> 0:15:23.040 the things that Glisten did was put was partner with 0:15:23.080 --> 0:15:26.800 local groups in Florida and put up these billboards all 0:15:26.800 --> 0:15:31.880 around the state so that students weren't just hearing the lies. 0:15:32.360 --> 0:15:35.640 You could go, they could actually see a visible display 0:15:35.760 --> 0:15:39.120 of support. That's important when you think about young people 0:15:39.280 --> 0:15:42.960 and their state of minds at this at this time. So, 0:15:43.160 --> 0:15:46.600 you know, I urge people to find ways to be 0:15:46.960 --> 0:15:54.240 vocally and visibly supportive of LGBTQ plus students. 0:15:56.040 --> 0:15:58.520 I want to switch gears for a moment because you, 0:15:58.800 --> 0:16:02.680 like I said at the beginning, or multiple hats and 0:16:02.880 --> 0:16:07.920 that of of actor, and you have been very vocal 0:16:07.960 --> 0:16:11.040 on your social media, very vocal on your platforms about 0:16:11.680 --> 0:16:15.840 the strikes right and about you know, I think that 0:16:16.000 --> 0:16:18.640 during this time, at least for myself, I will say, 0:16:19.160 --> 0:16:22.520 got a real education and in the machine that is Hollywood, 0:16:23.800 --> 0:16:28.080 got a real education on you know, those stars. You 0:16:28.120 --> 0:16:31.920 know that we see that bank the hundreds of millions 0:16:32.080 --> 0:16:37.040 right are far and few between the actual engine of people, yes, 0:16:37.080 --> 0:16:40.120 that make this glittery place go. And so I just 0:16:40.160 --> 0:16:43.440 want to give you an opportunity to talk about that 0:16:43.640 --> 0:16:47.920 strike and why it's important and why now. 0:16:47.960 --> 0:16:54.920 Frankly, Yeah, well, I'm happy to report from what I'm 0:16:54.920 --> 0:16:59.400 hearing that there are some actual negotiations finally happening. 0:16:59.440 --> 0:17:05.520 Good. And I say finally because the way they approached 0:17:05.600 --> 0:17:08.400 us from the beginning it was very much the way 0:17:08.440 --> 0:17:11.880 that we're treated on set, which is, you know, there's 0:17:13.000 --> 0:17:17.960 a tendency to infantilize actors, right, there's a very little respect, 0:17:18.520 --> 0:17:21.200 you know, when you feel like you have to have 0:17:21.280 --> 0:17:24.840 an ad follow your actors around in order to make 0:17:24.880 --> 0:17:27.040 sure that they're doing their job right, you know, to 0:17:27.119 --> 0:17:30.040 walk them to and from set. And you know, there's 0:17:30.280 --> 0:17:32.879 a mindset that these are you know, babies that you 0:17:32.880 --> 0:17:37.679 were babysitting. We're we are we are actors, we are 0:17:37.720 --> 0:17:44.959 are professionals, we are you know, we have trained in 0:17:45.000 --> 0:17:49.800 a skill. So and we're making you millions of dollars 0:17:50.320 --> 0:17:54.159 of millions of dollars right with the skill. And to 0:17:54.280 --> 0:17:56.879 treat us as if we have no agency and we 0:17:57.000 --> 0:18:03.480 have no right to to demand better pay, a better 0:18:04.119 --> 0:18:08.160 structure for residuals that has been outdated. The reason why 0:18:08.560 --> 0:18:12.680 we were doing this now is because over and over again. 0:18:13.800 --> 0:18:16.520 Even in my lifetime. You know, we went from uh 0:18:16.680 --> 0:18:19.400 four network, three networks to four. I remember when Fox 0:18:19.440 --> 0:18:24.800 came out, that's all my assets. So we went from 0:18:24.880 --> 0:18:32.280 four networks to cable to basic cable, to DVDs to streaming. 0:18:32.920 --> 0:18:36.680 So every time there was a new paradigm, there was 0:18:36.720 --> 0:18:41.440 a new platform, the producers would come to us and say, well, 0:18:41.520 --> 0:18:44.240 you know, it's a new media. This is this is 0:18:44.280 --> 0:18:46.280 a brand new thing. We don't know how it's gonna work, 0:18:46.400 --> 0:18:49.960 so just give us time and then you know, once 0:18:50.040 --> 0:18:53.600 it's once it's up and running, then we'll get to you. No, 0:18:53.800 --> 0:18:56.080 that's not gonna work anymore, because they never get back 0:18:56.119 --> 0:18:59.359 to us. Yeah, then things never change. And we just 0:18:59.440 --> 0:19:06.800 went through a worldwide pandemic in which people streamed all 0:19:06.840 --> 0:19:09.520 of our work and proudly that we got to help 0:19:09.560 --> 0:19:13.040 people get through that really difficult time with our work. 0:19:14.760 --> 0:19:18.400 But the sad truth is is that when inflation hit, 0:19:18.760 --> 0:19:24.119 and even before inflation, we weren't even breaking even with residuals. 0:19:24.359 --> 0:19:26.439 So then when we came when we came to the 0:19:26.520 --> 0:19:29.399 table and we presented a way to a you know, 0:19:29.520 --> 0:19:33.919 keep up with the cost of living and inflation's rise, 0:19:34.520 --> 0:19:38.119 they gave us an offer that was actually putting us 0:19:38.160 --> 0:19:40.800 at a point where we were making less than we 0:19:40.800 --> 0:19:45.200 were in twenty twenty. How is that a fair deal? 0:19:45.680 --> 0:19:48.400 How is that solving the problem. And we're using an 0:19:48.480 --> 0:19:54.600 old structure based on network television and rids that doesn't 0:19:54.600 --> 0:19:57.040 exist anymore. I mean, it exists on those platforms, but 0:19:57.119 --> 0:19:59.680 it doesn't work for streaming. That's not how it works. 0:19:59.680 --> 0:20:03.520 And they know it doesn't work. Uh So that's why 0:20:03.920 --> 0:20:07.720 it's one of the reasons why we're we're staying solid 0:20:07.720 --> 0:20:12.399 in our stance. And AI, you cannot tell me that 0:20:12.480 --> 0:20:17.359 you're going to pay me one hundred dollars as a 0:20:17.400 --> 0:20:21.960 background actor to scan my entire body and then use 0:20:22.000 --> 0:20:23.639 it in perpetuity. 0:20:24.920 --> 0:20:27.200 To do what It's insane, insane. 0:20:27.640 --> 0:20:31.720 So they know it's insane. But then they they you know, 0:20:31.760 --> 0:20:35.359 the their communication to to the to the to the 0:20:35.400 --> 0:20:37.639 world is you know, we're asking for too much. No, 0:20:37.720 --> 0:20:43.040 we're asking to be respected right for our work and 0:20:43.119 --> 0:20:49.199 to be paid in a fair way. That doesn't uh 0:20:49.280 --> 0:20:53.919 that that that that that acknowledges that things have changed, right, 0:20:54.400 --> 0:20:59.960 welcome to this new paradigm that you created, right, So yeah, 0:21:00.119 --> 0:21:03.840 have to pay for it. So I'm excited to hear, 0:21:04.040 --> 0:21:07.119 you know, where these negotiations land. You know, I was 0:21:07.200 --> 0:21:12.240 part of a letter that thousands of actors signed that said, 0:21:12.640 --> 0:21:15.840 you know, we've come this far. Don't stop now and 0:21:15.920 --> 0:21:18.600 settle for any for just anything. You know, we came 0:21:18.680 --> 0:21:22.359 here with a goal. We would like us to see 0:21:22.359 --> 0:21:24.960 that goal achieved, or at least get as close to 0:21:25.000 --> 0:21:28.000 it as we possibly can. But this paradigm worring right 0:21:28.000 --> 0:21:29.960 now isn't going to work anymore. 0:21:30.840 --> 0:21:34.640 And I honestly think that, you know, the actors strike, 0:21:34.840 --> 0:21:38.119 the writer's strike, you know, has it really set the 0:21:38.200 --> 0:21:42.760 stage in a lot of ways for its duration to 0:21:44.960 --> 0:21:50.920 have workers across industries recognize that you're not being paid 0:21:50.960 --> 0:21:54.000 your worth. Right that just keeping your head above water, 0:21:54.400 --> 0:21:57.480 whether it's a pandemic that hits, whether it's an emergency 0:21:57.520 --> 0:22:01.560 bill that hits, you should be able to live without that, 0:22:02.000 --> 0:22:04.879 without that level of economic security if you are working 0:22:04.920 --> 0:22:08.480 full time right like that, that is just the reality. 0:22:09.000 --> 0:22:15.160 And you know, we, I think everyone during the height 0:22:15.200 --> 0:22:17.080 of the pandemic, because let's not forget we are still 0:22:17.080 --> 0:22:20.439 in it. At the height of the pandemic, when we 0:22:20.440 --> 0:22:23.119 were locked up at home, we had a lot of 0:22:23.119 --> 0:22:28.800 time on our hands and realized how little we were 0:22:28.840 --> 0:22:32.879 settling for and that isn't that wasn't going to be 0:22:32.920 --> 0:22:37.320 acceptable anymore. And you see it happening with the auto workers. Yes, 0:22:37.440 --> 0:22:43.919 see it at hospital workers, you see at hotels in California, teachers, 0:22:44.080 --> 0:22:48.760 everyone knows that what you know, it just wasn't working anymore. 0:22:48.760 --> 0:22:54.879 We we we were literally living, you know, hand them out. Yeah, 0:22:55.680 --> 0:22:58.680 I mean I have nightmare story after nightmare story that 0:22:58.720 --> 0:23:01.840 I could tell you as an actor, you know, and 0:23:01.920 --> 0:23:05.960 the things that I allowed myself, the ways that I 0:23:06.000 --> 0:23:09.199 have allowed myself to be treated in order to do 0:23:09.280 --> 0:23:11.280 what I love because it's a dream, right. And that's 0:23:11.280 --> 0:23:14.879 the other thing, you know, we people are so so 0:23:15.000 --> 0:23:17.280 quick to say, well, you know, you know it's part 0:23:17.320 --> 0:23:20.800 of struggle, is part of being an actor or being 0:23:20.800 --> 0:23:25.679 an artist. Well why do we accept that? Right? You know, 0:23:25.800 --> 0:23:33.560 in France they actually subsidize artists. The government subsidizes artists. 0:23:33.600 --> 0:23:36.639 Not a great deal, but you know, there's there's like 0:23:36.680 --> 0:23:40.120 a stipend that because they value what art brings to 0:23:40.160 --> 0:23:44.879 their society. It's a way that we we it's a 0:23:45.000 --> 0:23:49.000 national conversation that we have to have. You know, I 0:23:49.480 --> 0:23:51.679 can I'm not supposed to promote my own work. But 0:23:52.200 --> 0:23:54.639 you know, when I think about Ricky Vasquez and what 0:23:54.720 --> 0:23:58.560 he was able to do for a generation of young people, 0:23:58.800 --> 0:24:02.919 queer people of color, and I think about what we 0:24:02.960 --> 0:24:05.639 did on the franchise I'm on now, you know, in 0:24:05.760 --> 0:24:10.920 order to have a conversation about diversity, real diversity in 0:24:10.960 --> 0:24:15.360 the future and who we value and our values in general. 0:24:16.560 --> 0:24:20.320 That's a service, that is a that is ah that 0:24:20.440 --> 0:24:26.119 is a value that we add to culture, to society, 0:24:26.280 --> 0:24:30.360 to the way that we think about ourselves. I think 0:24:30.400 --> 0:24:33.640 that's valuable, yeah, and we should be compensated for it. 0:24:33.920 --> 0:24:36.320 And I think that that's that's the thing, is that 0:24:37.040 --> 0:24:41.080 we should all be compensated for what it is that 0:24:41.119 --> 0:24:44.160 we offer, and that we are all of value regardless 0:24:44.160 --> 0:24:46.920 of what it is that we produce. But certainly when 0:24:46.960 --> 0:24:49.800 we are producing something that we should be able to 0:24:49.840 --> 0:24:52.280 see the fruits of that labor and not just see 0:24:52.320 --> 0:24:54.840 it in terms of rocket ships that are going into 0:24:54.840 --> 0:24:58.040 out of space with billionaires and you know, and and 0:24:58.720 --> 0:25:01.160 the like. The last question that I have for you, 0:25:01.560 --> 0:25:03.600 my friend, and thank you for being so gracious with 0:25:03.680 --> 0:25:08.280 your time, is, you know, people are struggling with hope 0:25:09.000 --> 0:25:12.560 right now. They are struggling with hope, they are struggling 0:25:12.680 --> 0:25:15.800 to find light, they are struggling to be the light. 0:25:16.359 --> 0:25:19.600 And I just want, you know, to ask you what 0:25:19.760 --> 0:25:23.240 are you doing? You know, how are you holding on 0:25:23.480 --> 0:25:26.880 to hope in this time? And what you know, what 0:25:26.920 --> 0:25:29.840 do you offer to others that that are that find 0:25:29.840 --> 0:25:30.920 themselves in darkness. 0:25:31.240 --> 0:25:35.080 It's a great and necessary question. And I'll tell you 0:25:35.119 --> 0:25:37.920 the thing that has gotten me through this year specifically, 0:25:38.840 --> 0:25:40.679 and it's one of the reasons why I feel so 0:25:40.840 --> 0:25:45.960 strongly about advocating for inclusive curriculum is I've gone back 0:25:46.800 --> 0:25:50.960 and reminded myself of our history. You know, I read, 0:25:51.160 --> 0:25:58.560 I reread Eric Servini's book The Debiant War, which which 0:25:58.720 --> 0:26:03.560 tracks the the progress, let's call it, of Frank Cameny 0:26:03.760 --> 0:26:09.560 and his case against the United States. But in that book, 0:26:09.600 --> 0:26:12.840 it's also you know, he also covers Sylvia Rivera, he 0:26:12.880 --> 0:26:16.879 covers Marsha P. Johnson. And when I go back and 0:26:16.960 --> 0:26:21.200 I read about what they endured, what they were able 0:26:21.280 --> 0:26:26.960 to do in a moment when we weren't talking about pride, 0:26:27.760 --> 0:26:34.720 where the feeling that was overwhelming was shame. And it's 0:26:34.760 --> 0:26:37.040 what they're trying to do now. They're trying to shame 0:26:37.160 --> 0:26:40.600 us into silence again. They're trying to shove us back 0:26:40.600 --> 0:26:43.240 in the closet, trying to make us feel like we 0:26:43.280 --> 0:26:45.800 can't be who we are in public. When I go 0:26:45.920 --> 0:26:48.240 back and read about what they were able to do 0:26:49.640 --> 0:26:53.439 that they demanded that we'd be proud of who we 0:26:53.480 --> 0:26:57.600 are and that people respect us. When we were literally 0:26:57.640 --> 0:27:01.960 called deviance. We were, you know, we were still considered 0:27:01.960 --> 0:27:06.200 by psychiatrists as sick. Yep, right, yea, And yet they 0:27:06.320 --> 0:27:10.399 changed the conversation at a really dark time. We're not 0:27:10.480 --> 0:27:13.640 in that place. We could be. They're trying to get 0:27:13.680 --> 0:27:15.400 us back there, but we're not in that place now. 0:27:15.760 --> 0:27:18.560 So my hope lies in the fact that we know 0:27:18.720 --> 0:27:22.960 better now that we're armed with all that Frank and 0:27:23.119 --> 0:27:27.879 Sylvia and Marcia gave us. And my hope is that 0:27:27.960 --> 0:27:32.080 we rise up and use what they taught us to 0:27:32.160 --> 0:27:35.840 fight back to say no, we won't be silenced, No 0:27:36.400 --> 0:27:40.640 we won't be shamed about who we are, and yes, 0:27:40.720 --> 0:27:43.560 we will take care of our students, we will take 0:27:43.600 --> 0:27:46.960 care of our parents and teachers, and yes we will 0:27:47.000 --> 0:27:51.600 demand that we let our students live up to their 0:27:51.640 --> 0:27:56.439 potential because we all, we all gain something from that 0:27:57.760 --> 0:28:02.680 our true democracy. I love it. 0:28:02.960 --> 0:28:06.959 I love it. I am so appreciative for you, your voice, 0:28:07.080 --> 0:28:11.119