I’m trying to figure out why Salma Hayek looks weird/bad in these photos? I think it’s the combination of terrible makeup and flat hair. Salma has great hair, so I don’t know why she chose the same hairstyle that I use to wash my face at night. I also don’t get the red/pink eye makeup – it makes everyone look sickly. Anyway, these are some photos of Salma on the red carpet for the LA premiere of The Prophet. Salma has been doing the press rounds and she has a lot of thoughts about Donald Trump and racism. Some highlights:
On Donald Trump’s comments about Mexicans: “I’m aware that he would say anything to attract attention and create the publicity around him. If something generates publicity, I would never be surprised about anything he does.”
She won’t say his name: Hayek refuses to “say his name” because she doesn’t want to give the presidential hopeful any “extra publicity…I’d be surprised if he did something courageous and meaningful that nobody found out about. This was not courageous and meaningful.”
Racism in America, Sandra Bland’s death: “We have a big problem. I think that this is the big elephant in the room. Because there were many years where people were saying, ‘Oh, racism is over in America.’ And, ‘America is very inclusive.’ And I think in the last couple of years, more and more, we’re realizing that that is a lie and that this is a very big problem that we need to deal with.”
[From E! News, Entertainment Tonight]
I think it’s a decent stand to take to refuse to say Trump’s name, although the argument I make when I’m covering him is that we need to shine a very bright light on just how crazy, stupid and horrible he is. I think both arguments are valid though – if Salma doesn’t want to say his name, so be it. As for Salma’s remarks about racism… I think she’s right. I think the “post-racial America” thing was always a pipe dream. My only real complaint is that I don’t believe America is the only country struggling with deep racial divides, although that’s the way the international press covers it.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
Something smart from her. Won’t be snarky. Thanks Salma.
Agreed. I stand with Salma.
As do I.
*raises rock and roll hand symbol to the sky*
Yep spot on
Yup. Love what she had to say here.
I love that she never says his name and I hope that catches on, The Dump head would explode.
I have a way around it for you, Kaiser. Take the D from the first name add it to the last name, eliminate the TR and you have “THE DUMP”! Voila, it’s a hip nick like JLo, but also perfectly sums up what comes out of his mouth.
I agree with her on racism, but I’ve said it ad nauseam, I guess.
Ha ha, that’s exactly how I refer to him..
Good idea!
I just refer to him as the narcissist.
Regarding racism it’s scary how bad things have gotten according the Southern Poverty Law Center hate groups have risen 30% since 2000 – that’s just unacceptable. http://www.splcenter.org/what-we-do/hate-and-extremism
I have so many opinions on this, having lived in the states and then bounced around abroad in various expat communities. My take:
-YES, Americans have a big problem with race. What class is to the British, language is to Canadians and race is to Americans. Countries have their issues and race is EVERYTHING when it comes to American identity.
-However, I also think that a Civil War forced Americans to confront their own racism at least in its most overt forms. I think Americans had to be honest at a level that other countries, like the UK and France, have not had to be. I’ve said this many times: you will NEVER see a non-white UK Prime Minister or French President. But you WILL see a non-white American one, and that is the difference. To me, Europeans are often so hypocritical about race.
-At the same time, I don’t think the US really completed what it started with emancipation. Reconstruction was a bust, and the south was–like Europe–never really forced to confront its own racism. There should have been Truth and Reconciliation commissions following the Civil Rights movement in the 1950s. But there weren’t, so Southerners could continue lying to themselves about “states rights” and “heritage”.
-STILL, Dr. King pointed out that he felt Northern racism was more pernicious than that of the overtly racist Southerner. The Northern type of racism is the institutionalized, implicit kind–the casual racist who’s never been asked to think all that deeply about why America looks the way it does today. I completely agree: America will only become a post-racial society to the extent that it can move past that racial barrier–not the type erected by Jim Crow.
Amazing, insightful comment– thank you for sharing your opinions! Your thoughts about “states rights” and “heritage” are so on point, considering the way those two phrases are being thrown around right now.
Having lived in the South, I don’t think it’s that Southerners haven’t recognized or confronted their racism. On the contrary, Southerners are much less likely to take offense when you point out that something that they are doing is racist, whereas Northerners and Midwesterners would say “what, no, I’m not racist, I would never, how dare you!” That doesn’t mean that Southerners are less racist, mind, just that it’s more open. Which is kind of what your last paragraph is about.
I think the lack of confrontation is more at a state level. Black History Month is really about preserving the history that those states were bent on suppressing to save face. And Google the way Southern states have implemented MLK Jr Day as a federal holiday: it tells you everything you need to know. The Confederate flag flying at state capitals! Gah. Really, this is what I mean. The white power structure was never forced to publicly reveal what they had done to oppress black Americans in the South, so that same power structure was able to walk away without confronting it. Lest we forget, desegregation happened a federal gunpoint (unbelievable!).
As a Canadian I must say that we have a race problem. The language issue isn’t the same. The language issue is not about inequality but politics. We have a huge race problem in Canada and we love to pretend we don’t
Well, I haven’t lived everywhere in Canada but I did live there for 14 years, and another 14 in the US, and I can definitely attest to fundamentally different attitudes toward race. I noticed this most obviously in the US school system (I was a teacher). By and large, Canadians are simply more aware. That’s not to say there aren’t race problems in Canada (and any country with a massive immigrant population has race problems), but our own history is defined by language–we are the product of French and British empires to an extent that America is not. Our politics are how we form our national identities.
That’s funny though…the language issue was about inequality back when, wasn’t it? Because francophones were shut out of better employment and political representation and all of that. Over time, it’s taken on political symbolism. And WWI–whether francophones should have to fight on behalf of the British. This really forced Canadians to think about who they were as a nation. Americans never had that moment; they’re the melting pot and English is the common ground. Anyway, good chat Celebitchy! cheerio
idsmith, Greenie, great and insightful comments. I’ve also lived in both and agree that Canada has a race problem but it may be more sneaky, flying under the radar as much as can be hidden. Impressions only – no serious data gathering!
I’m a southern black woman who met a Canadian man at my job. I was instantly taken–probably one of the most beautiful men I had ever seen. Sadly his taste in clothing was godawful.
Anyway, I had a conversation with him about race once. I was puzzled when he said “I’m not black. I’m Indo-Chinese, Scottish, and Jamaican.” He sounded offended that I dumbed it down to black vs white. I was offended that he felt it was such a bad thing to be considered black.
My final thought was “In the U.S., nobody cares about your deep lineage. According to what they see, you are black.”
I don’t know much about the level of racism in other countries and can only go by the few things that I’ve heard from people who have lived in and visited places outside the U.S. It seems like some countries are about even with America’s, while some may be a little worse. And I agree with you about the idea of Truth and Reconciliation missions.
Excellent and factual Commentary GreenieWeenie, cause often you do see Europeans Trying to front too like thy are above that ( and Latinos too HELLO D.R. ) like they aren’t throwing Bananas in the pitch at black Soccer players and far right Nationalist parties aren’t in the actual government in Greece etc
Very succinct. Thank you GreenieWeenie.
While there is racism everywhere, I think that more people pay attention to the USA because of their position in today’s world. People may not care so much about Switzerland or Sweden or any other country because they are much less important economically. I also think that the difference in “freedom of speech” plays a role there – in the USA, people are allowed to say things they would be prosecuted for in other countries. It doesn’t mean that they are the only ones thinking those things, but they will be the only ones saying them out loud.
You are right! We are finally dealing with this problem in a more mature way in Brasil:by discussing it . Latin America has huuge problems to solve,racism is among them.
Since we’re on the topic of racism, another White cop has shot and killed a Black man in Ohio. It was caught on their dashboard cam. Of course he claimed the victim tried to drag him with his car but the footage showed otherwise. He has been indicted.
I still can’t believe they were able to handle this case so quickly and efficently, but Tamir Rice’s killer still roams free.
Charges don’t equal convictions. That remains to be seen. I hope that the prosecutor is as determined in this case as he would be for any other defendant. The prosecutor in the Trayvon Martin case, in my opinion, did not have his heart or mind in the case, he was just going through the motions of an obligatory-assignment. ( I realize he wasn’t in LE, but I am using it only as an example of phoning it in)
That’s very true, but I was talking about the charges. In the Rice case they didn’t even start interviewing witnesses until three months later. The whole process for all these cases is just so frustrating.
yep.
That poor girl looks just like him.
Oh God, she really does, doesn’t she.
I mean…
But maybe she’ll morph in Salma later on? Hopefully?
What??? That little girl is adorable!
She’s awesome. That’s all.
I do think that American racism is more pernicious than in other countries, especially anti-black racism. Not that it doesn’t exist in other nations, but the United States were built on racism in a way that other countries simply were not. It’s baked into our foundations.
I wouldn’t say Germany was built on racism but we all know the past of the country I was born and live in well enough to think that we should have been able to overcome issues such as xenophobia and racism but I can tell you – we have not.
Immigration is a huge problem here (refugees and non-refugees risk their lives to get to Europe, thousands have drowned in the Mediterranean Sea this year alone), not because they’re coming here to seek refuge but because too many Germans are ignorant, uneducated and have absolutely NO empathy for anyone but themselves. It’s painful to watch, really, and unacceptable.
Sometimes, it is as though nobody has learned anything from the past.
I think you’re generalizing a bit too much and you’re mixing up immigrants and refugees.
Valois, nope. There are no “immigrants” in Germany that can be mixed up with refugees because there is no immigration law. You come here seeking refuge without coming for a specific job that you have already secured, then you’re a refugee and you need to go through the process every refugee goes through.
And as a German, let me tell you, it’s not looking good right now. The EU has a massive problem because apparently, 28 countries can’t agree on much. What a shocker. It’s a political and social clusterf*ck and I, for one, am rather ashamed that we are so ill-prepared.
I am German. And it’s hard for me to find an English equiivalent, but I’m talking about the difference between refugees and… well, I hate that term, but most conservatives call them like that, Wirtschschaftsflüchtlinge.
Besides that, we do have some sort of immigration law since 2005 even if it’s a lousy one.
“United States were built on racism in a way that other countries simply were not. It’s baked into our foundations.”
Although I wouldn’t disagree that racism is baked into the foundations of the United States (in fact I would strongly agree!), I would disagree that it isn’t baked into the foundations of other countries. The rise and fall of the european nation-state is predicated on racism and racist principles disguised as nationalism. How many Pictish people left on the British Isles? Can a Turkish immigrant ever hope to become a citizen of Germany? Franz Ferdinand was never allowed to sit next to his wife at state functions, and he had to sign a document agreeing his sons would not be emperor because she was Czech, even though she was still nobility. The Roman economy (and law) would have collapsed overnight without a massive and extensive slave economy that was predicated on racist ideals.
The British and French did all of their brutal slave-holding in the West Indies–average life span of a slave in Haiti was 18 months.
We brought it with us when we conquered, but American racism wasn’t born in a vacuum.
Thank you for this.
Thank you piecesofme! I think people really need to go back to the beginning of civilization if they want to see where slavery and racism began. Egyptians and Romans had slaves. Slaves are in the bible. Nigerians sold their own people into slavery. Its pretty much been every place you can name at one time or another.
Yes, a Turkish immigrant can become a full German citizen after 8 years of living here
This has been on my mind a lot lately, racism in Canada. I know people like to wave the maple leaf and think we’re America’s more progressive cousin but racism is institutionalized here to the point our prime minister can be racist and nobody blinks an eye.
The treatment of First Nations, Inuit and Metis in this country is horrible. In my Dad’s short life span, this all happened to him at the hands of his government:
1. taken from his home at 5 years old and sent to an “Indian Hospital” where they conducted experiments on him to the point where he didn’t trust the medical system. When he got sick a few years ago he refused to seek medical assistance BECAUSE of what happened to him at a child. Even when he had hospital stays to help him with cancer, he didn’t believe the medication they were giving him was helping him. It was so heartbreaking.
2. sent to “Indian Day School”. He only spoke his native language at home so of course he didn’t learn English and he was severely punished for this. He had scars on his hands and legs from the whippings he was given.
3. Sent to “Indian Residential School” which was 1,000 miles from his home and family where he witnessed and experienced untold abuse that he took with him to his grave.
4. Was arrested for defending his land against development. If this was a non-Indigenous Person there would have been protests. But because it was a “Native argument and we give them everything for free anyway arrest them!”
and that’s just the stuff I know about. I remember one time being in a store and my Dad was fueling up the car and someone cut in front of him and said it was his right to do so because he paid for my Dad’s car and his bratty kids so he should pay first.
This is all personal knowledge. Go read any article on First Nations in Canada and you’ll read countless comments that would make any “redneck” blush.
Over 230 Aboriginal women are missing and murdered. If they were anything but Aboriginal there would be a task force and an inquiry.
And don’t get me started on Cindy Gladue, an Aboriginal woman whose private parts were dissected from her body and used as EVIDENCE against the man who allegedly murdered her. No respect for her or her body or her in the afterlife. And the “alleged” murderer was acquitted.
Sorry for the long rant. I get tired of people thinking racism doesn’t exist here. Racism is accepted here and part of our fabric.
Thank you for sharing and no need to apologize. It’s not a rant – this is a truthful recitation of prejudice and injustice. Your family’s story is multiplied by many thousands. This history (and these modern stories) must be told and you have educated readers here, who will go out and share the education with more people.
I don’t see an absence of racism in Canada either. And there was slavery here, which surprises people on both sides of the border, but the economic system wasn’t predicated on the need for slavery (as it was in the south). Anyone from Australia here? Similar issues, yes? With aboriginal peoples?
England was not the “nice” imperialist and it left a tragic, violent legacy in its colonies – but it sure seems to have great public relations or we wouldn’t be sighing over Downton Abbey.
I see Canada as progressive in some ways and regressive in others. It’s a funny mix.
Hi all. Yes, I’m Australian.
Up until this year I would’ve said that Australians have finally matured about our continent’s Indigenous history and recognised the amazing-ness of our country’s 45,000-60,000 year human history (and that Australian culture didn’t just start 227 years ago with the arrival of Europeans).
I would’ve argued that – while there are pockets of dumb-ass racism – the majority of us realise how crappy our forebears were in the treatment of Aboriginal people. Since then, we’ve tried throwing money at enduring problems re: health, education, welfare etc., but there remain major inequalities – not only in remote communities, but across the country.
I grew up in Central Australia, so recognition and respect for Indigenous people has always been a big thing for me.
However… there have been some incidents this year that have me questioning my country’s attitudes to race. As disgusting as racism towards immigrants is, you can kind of understand how people can get in that xenophobic mindset (“who are these people coming to MY country” etc.) But in the case of Aboriginal people – on whose land you now live – HOW DARE YOU presume to be racist towards these people???? They did not ask for their land to be invaded, and they certainly do not ask to be judged by non-Indigenous Australians.
At the moment there is a disgusting saga unfolding with racist, redneck bogans BOO-ING a champion Indigenous football player. The reason? He dared to call out racism in the crowd when someone called him an “ape”. He also mimed a traditional war dance when he scored a goal (in the competition’s Indigenous round). Uneducated scumbags in the crowd now boo him whenever he gets near the ball in a game. It makes me sick.
Im sorry to taint the comment section with superficial remarks but I think Salma looks great there. She has such pretty eyes.
Agree Kaiser, the red/pink eye makeup is sickly looking and unattractive…..
Her daughter has the exact same face as her father, but with her mother’s coloring. she’s cute.
She is. Such an expressive face.