Academy Award-winning actress Susan Sarandon apologized Friday for saying at a pro-Palestinian rally last month that people who are now afraid to be Jewish were “getting a taste of what it feels like to be Muslim in this country, so often subjugated”. to violence.”
The comments sparked widespread criticism and soon after his agency, United Talent Agency, made it known that he had dropped. her as a client.
in a statement Posted on Instagram on Friday night, Sarandon said he had been trying to communicate his concern about the rise in hate crimes. “This phrase was a terrible mistake,” she said, “since it implies that until recently Jews have been oblivious to persecution, when the truth is quite the opposite.”
“As we all know, from centuries of oppression and genocide in Europe to the Tree of Life shooting in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,” he said, referring to the synagogue shooting that killed 11 people and injured six others in the most anti-Semitic attack. deadly in American history. , “Jews have long known about religious discrimination and violence that continues to this day.”
“I deeply regret that I diminished this reality and hurt people with this comment,” he said of his comments at the Nov. 17 rally. “My intention was to show solidarity in the fight against intolerance of all kinds, and I regret not having done so.”
Anti-Semitic incidents and Islamophobic attacks have spiked in New York City, on campuses and online since the war between Israel and Hamas began.
Sarandon, 77, has long been an outspoken activist for left-wing and progressive causes, sometimes clashing with more moderate liberals in Hollywood, while cultivating a prolific career with iconic roles in “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” “Bull Durham” and “Thelma and Luisa.” Most recently he appeared in the Showtime series “Ray Donovan” and the DC Comics movie “Blue Beetle,” which premiered in August.
