Los Angeles: Widespread support poured in for Hollywood Actress Melissa Barrera who was sacked from the Scream sequel for calling out Israeli genocide and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in Gaza.
“Actress Melissa Barrera is fired from the next Scream film sequel for daring to speak for the persecuted Palestinians”, Irish member of the European Parliament, Mick Wallace, wrote on social media platform X extending his support to Barrera.
Quoting the popular inspirational quote, “At the end of the day, I'd rather be excluded for who I include, than be included for who I exclude", Mick Wallace further wrote, “The intimidation by #Israeli lobby is a Disgrace.”
Mick Wallace and other Irish members of the EU Parliament are vociferously calling out against the Israeli aggression in the occupied Palestinian territories since the day one of the latest escalation.
Barrera was removed from “Scream VII” because of her social media posts, including referring to Israel as a “colonized” land and saying Israel controls the media, according to the US entertainment magazine Variety.
“Gaza is currently being treated like a concentration camp,” she wrote in one post on Instagram stories.
“Cornering everyone together, with nowhere to go, no electricity no water … People have learnt nothing from our histories. And just like our histories, people are still silently watching it all happen. THIS IS GENOCIDE & ETHNIC CLEANSING”, she wrote.
In another Instagram post, which was viewed as "anti-Semitic”, Barrera wrote, “I too come from a colonized country. Palestine will be free.”
In a statement released after Barrera ousted from the popular sequel, a spokesperson for Spyglass, the company behind the Scream franchise, said, “Spyglass’ stance is unequivocally clear: We have zero tolerance for antisemitism or the incitement of hate in any form, including false references to genocide, ethnic cleansing, Holocaust distortion or anything that flagrantly crosses the line into hate speech.”
Among those who showed support for Barrera was also film critic Zoe Rose Bryant.
“Melissa Barrera will not be silenced and neither will we,” she wrote on X sharing a Palestinian flag emoji.
Extending her support to Barrera, the US television series Stranger Things star Grace Van Dien wrote, “So we're all boycotting spyglass films now, yea?”
Meanwhile, the Mexican actress has gained over 400,000 followers on Instagram within 48 hours after being fired from ‘Scream 7’ over her stand against the violence against the Palestinians.
Melissa Barrera herself is unperturbed by her removal from the sequel.
“As a Latina, a proud Mexicana, I feel the responsibility of having a platform that allows me the privilege of being heard, and therefore I have tried to use it to raise awareness about issues I care about and to lend my voice to those in need", she wrote on Instagram Thursday, beginning her post with condemnation of antisemitism and Islamophobia.
“Every person on this earth … deserves equal human rights, dignity and, of course, freedom. I believe a group of people are NOT their leadership, and that no governing body should be above criticism”, she wrote.
“I pray day and night for no more deaths, for no more violence, and for peaceful co-existence,” she concluded her statement.
“I will continue to speak out for those that need it most and continue to advocate for peace and safety, for human rights and freedom. Silence is not an option for me”, she wrote.
Melissa Barrera was also one of the Hollywood A-listers, including Michelle Wolf, Joaquin Phoenix, Cate Blanchett, Jessica Chastain and Susan Sarandon who in an open letter last month urged U.S. President Joe Boden to facilitate a cease-fire in the Israeli onslaught against Gaza.
For all the latest News, Opinions and Views, download ummid.com App.
Select Language To Read in Urdu, Hindi, Marathi or Arabic.
