“I talk a lot… I talk a good amount. If you know me you’re well aware, if you don’t know me you’re also probably well aware,” Reneé Rapp ain’t never told a lie. And after winning Outstanding Music Artist last night at the 2024 GLAAD Media Awards, her matter-of-fact tone has never been put to better use than when she used her 30 seconds on the stage to advocate for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza.
WATCH: @reneerapp accepts the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Music Artist.#GLAADawards pic.twitter.com/JlPwdPACpJ
— GLAAD (@glaad) March 15, 2024
Her speech itself is short and conversational in the ways that have become Rapp’s trademark. She fangirled over Victoria Monét (relatable), she gently roasted her parents for being straight, and correctly noted that gays are, of course, the hottest people any place that we enter. But then she acknowledged not only her immense privilege standing on that stage, but also the privilege and power of others in the room:
“We’re in a room of very influential people and very privileged people, which is exciting, and it’s also a huge privlege to be a part of that. Having said that, I would also like to take the opportunity to show support and call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza. Please continue to advocate for yourselves, please continue to advocate for your friends, for your queer friends, and for those who cannot advocate for themselves.”
What most struck me about Reneé Rapp’s willingness to say the words “ceasefire in Gaza” from the GLAAD stage is how rare it is, even now, to see even that level of advocacy at all.
To be honest with you, it feels weird that this would be news. It feels weird that publicly wishing for an end to unconscionable levels of violence, of genocide, that have been going on for months would necessitate headlines or even be considered as bravery.
But we’ve also seen as artists like Melissa Barrera have their entire careers halted for similar demonstrations of solidarity. After social media posts drawing comparison to her own country’s history with colonization (Barrera is from Mexico) and Palestine, Barrera was fired from the Scream franchise that she’d recently become the face of. Just this week, we learned that she will be replaced with the return of Neve Campbell, Scream’s original final girl. Even Susan Sarandon, Hollywood royalty with a decades long career behind her, was dropped by her talent agency for speaking at a pro-Palestine protest. With last Sunday’s Oscars and this week’s GLAAD Awards, we’ve unofficially wrapped what is often known as “Awards Season” in the industry, and with very little mention of Gaza beyond red buttons by Artists for Ceasefire worn on red carpets.
In his Oscars speech on Sunday, Jonathan Glazer, the Jewish director of the Holocaust film Zone of Interest, used his time on stage to condemn “the Holocaust being hijacked by an occupation, which has lead to conflict for so many innocent people.” The ceremony itself was protested by Film Workers for Palestine and SAG-AFTRA Members for Ceasefire calling for “No awards amid a genocide.”
And still, even with these moments of celebrity advocacy and the risks that I know statements like the ones they are making come with, I believe Reneé Rapp (listen she does not know me, but her brand is “relatability” so excuse me for making her a friend in my head) would agree with me in keeping the main thing, the main thing.
I am proud that Reneé Rapp used her time on the GLAAD stage to do what so few others have been able to. But she’s using her platform to advocate for a ceasefire, so let’s keep that at the center of our energy and not be distracted by the celebrity news of it all. Ceasefire NOW. End the violence NOW. Run it ‘till it’s backwards.
