Kerry Washington Theorizes on Why Black People Are ‘Seduced into Voting Conservative’
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Kerry Washington offered her theory on why some Black people “are seduced into voting conservative,” even if it means voting against their own best interests.
Washington sat down with The Hollywood Reporter to discuss her upcoming Netflix movie Prom, in which she plays a conservative PTA president who would rather cancel a high school prom than allow a gay kid to attend. When asked why she chose to play the character in a somewhat sympathetic light, the actress said, “It was sideways from our assumptions about who is Midwestern, who is the heartland of this country and, yes, who is conservative.”
Washington added, “I know from being on the campaign trail in ’08, and ’12, and now, how many Black folks are seduced into voting conservative, because of their feelings about gay marriage. They’ll vote against their own best interests on all these other areas, because of these ideas.”
The Scandal star went on to say she wants to “ask audiences to expand their idea of who they think conservatives are,” and also “hold up a mirror to folks of color in this country to say, ‘How are you treating your own children? Do you have the courage to truly love your children unconditionally?’ Because it’s a huge issue in communities of color.”
Washington also compared Black parents who worry about their child’s sexual orientation to the way her own mother worried about her becoming an actress. “[My mom] was like, ‘Your life is already going to be so hard as a Black woman, do you really want to be a starving artist? Do you want to layer that on top of your struggles?’ I think that’s how a lot of parents of color of LGBTQ kids feel, like, ‘Honestly, you’re Black and a woman and now you want to love other women too, like really?’”
Washington is known for being a politically active celebrity. In August, the actress hosted the third night of the Democratic National Convention. She also appeared in a 2016 video endorsing Hillary Clinton. In January 2017, Washington attended Barack Obama’s final White House party.
