Charlize Theron has revealed she is considering leaving America because of a perceived increase in racism under the Trump administration.
“I don’t even know how to talk about the last year under our new administration,” Theron said in an interview for Elle conducted by the comedian Chelsea Handler. “But racism is much more alive and well than people thought. We can’t deny it anymore. We have to be vocal. ”
Theron, who was born and raised in apartheid South Africa, went on to claim that she fears for the safety of her adopted children, both of whom are African-American.
“There are places in this country where, if I got a job, I wouldn’t take it. I wouldn’t travel with my kids to some parts of America, and that’s really problematic,” she said.
“There are a lot of times when I look at my kids and I’m like, if this continues, I might have to [leave America]. Because the last thing I want is for my children to feel unsafe,” she continued. “But they’re going to have to know that it’s a different climate for them than it is for me, and how unfair that is.
Theron, 42, whose major roles include The Italian Job, Hancock, and Mad Max: Fury Road, last month sounded off on the issue of gun rights, describing it as “outrageous” to even discuss allowing school teachers to bear arms.
“I just don’t understand when people try to make the conversation, the argument that the fix is more guns,” she said on the issue. “It is so outrageous to me.”
Other celebrities including Miley Cyrus, Samuel L. Jackson, and Barbara Streisand threatened to leave the United States under the Trump administration, although few appear to have carried through on their pledge.