No matter how much we debate on whether artists should raise their voices on political issues, what happened at the Golden Globes awards ceremony is a clear indicator of the times to come.

Arguably the best actress of all times, Meryl Streep was the recipient of the Cecil B DeMille award on the occasion. Overtaken by emotion, she did not talk about her trajectory as an artist but rather commented on one of the most talked-about issues of our time — the election of Donald Trump as US President — without taking any names. She remarked: “There was one performance that stunned me. It sank its hooks in my heart, not because it was good, there’s nothing good about it. But it was effective and it did its job. It made its intended audience laugh and show their teeth. It was the moment when the person asking to sit in the most respected seat in our country imitated a disabled reporter, someone he outranked in privilege and power, and the capacity to fight back. It kind of broke my heart and I still can’t get it out of my head because it wasn’t in a movie. It was real life. And this instinct to humiliate when it’s modeled by someone in the public platform, by someone powerful, it filters down into everybody’s life because it gives permission for other people to do the same thing. Disrespect invites disrespect. Violence incites violence…”

Wow! Very well put Meryl S. Truly great. I wish our politicians would take a leaf out of your book.

Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine, January 15th, 2017