Revered actor/director and activist Sean Penn, who plays a ruthless white supremacist in One Battle After Another, has condemned the death of far-right influencer Charlie Kirk, who died shortly after being shot in the neck. While Penn was no fan of Kirk’s preachings himself, stressing that he disagreed with Kirk on almost every point, the actor promoted the need for open discussions (via The New York Times).
We need that debate. We’ve gotta fight it out and find a compromise. [Acts of political violence] do come into fashion, and the way we kill the fashion of it is people of conscience on both sides recognizing that if somebody really believes something, that’s your friend.
He further emphasized the need to recognize differing viewpoints as valid opinions amid these tumultuous times, where people remain deeply divided over their political leanings.
Sean Penn Wasn’t Surprised by Charlie Kirk’s Death
Considering it seems like everything is reaching a boiling point in the current climate, where animosity between people of different viewpoints continues to grow, Penn was largely unsurprised by the violence directed at Kirk.
In an interview with Vanity Fair, the actor expressed that he was still processing Kirk’s death, adding that he was worried about this type of horror coming into the fashion, “I was not surprised at all”.
Like a lot of people, I’ve been worrying that this kind of horror was moving towards coming into fashion. It’s disturbing enough that I would say I’m still processing it. And what its implications are.
As discussed before, Penn doesn’t advocate for what Kirk was saying and has been critical of the Trump administration, but like several other major figures, he condemns political violence of any kind.
Sean Penn’s Call for Compromise is a Double-Edged Sword
Penn’s reasoning for the need for compromise amid a fractured society is understandable. One should put oneself in each other’s shoes to understand the perspective they’re coming from. Although the thought of people engaging in a healthy debate to settle their differences might work on paper, in practice, things can get a lot more murky.
For instance, hate speech that incites harm against certain communities under the guise of freedom of expression shouldn’t be given the same recognition and platform. Since giving them that platform could potentially lead to hateful conduct being normalized.
Although, understandably, Penn was aiming to diffuse the current political divide, which has only elevated in the past few months, harmful rhetoric, delivered under the guise of free speech, shouldn’t be validated. All in all, people should engage in healthy discussions to recognize their differences, but ideologies that thrive on hate and destruction can never be reasoned with.
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One Battle After Another is currently running in theatres.
