Leonardo DiCaprio’s Latest Humanitarian Effort: Fighting Voter Suppression

Andrew ShusterAug 25th, 2020, 3:12 pm
 
Leonardo DiCaprio Voter Suppression

Robyn Beck/Getty Images)

Leonardo DiCaprio is one of the more politically-active movie stars working today, with his focus typically aimed at preventing global warming. DiCaprio even refers to himself as an “actor and environmentalist” in his own Twitter bio. But with the November election coming up, the star has taken up a new cause: fighting voter suppression.

Over the past several days, DiCaprio has posted a number of tweets raising awareness about voter suppression, which he describes in one tweet as “a very real and present threat to our democracy.” Attached to that comment was a trailer for the upcoming documentary, All In: The Fight for Democracy, which takes a look at the history of American citizens being denied the right to vote.

A few days later, DiCaprio supported Sarah Silverman’s call on big businesses to allow their workers to have off on Election Day so they can go out and vote. Silverman tagged Amazon, Walmart, Pepsi and other major corporations in her tweet, to which DiCaprio responded, “Who else is in?”

On Tuesday, DiCaprio shared a link to an article posted on the website Democracy Docket, which details different ways to cast a ballot prior to Election Day, either in person or by mail. The actor told his followers, “Early voting is a great way to ensure your ballot is counted.”

The actor’s tweets come on the heels of many Democrats accusing President Donald Trump of attempting to hijack the election by preventing mail-in voting. Trump has been on a crusade against mail-in ballots and has also opposed funding for the United States Postal Service. Trump has argued that universal mail-in voting is a faulty system that’s likely to be rigged, but many on the left feel the president’s claims are unfounded and he’s simply trying to suppress votes during the coronavirus pandemic.

Although DiCaprio typically promotes environmental causes when he’s not making movies, this isn’t the first time the actor has called on people to vote. In November 2018, DiCaprio and his Once Upon a Time in Hollywood co-star, Brad Pitt, appeared in a PSA encouraging people to vote in the midterm elections.

DiCaprio has also been critical of President Trump’s stance on global warming, specifically his withdrawal from the Paris climate accord. During an appearance at the Global Citizen Festival in September 2019, the actor criticized Trump for “denying the very science of this climate catastrophe.” Back in early March, DiCaprio attended a fundraiser for Joe Biden’s presidential campaign.

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