Hollywood Icon Morgan Freeman Speaks Out Against Push to ‘Defund the Police’
Hollywood icon Morgan Freeman isn’t on board with defunding the police.
The “Angel Has Fallen” star spoke out against the leftist movement during a recent interview with Selena Hill of the Black Enterprise. He said he is not “in the least bit for defunding the police.”
“Police work is — aside from all the negativity around it — it is very necessary for us to have them,” Freeman said. “And most of them are guys that are doing their job, they’re going about their day-to-day jobs. I know some policemen who would never even pull their guns, except in a range, that sort of thing.”
Freeman participated in the interview to promote his movie, “The Killing of Kenneth Chamberlain,” released Sept. 17. The film, executive produced by Freeman, tells the story of Kenneth Chamberlain, a Marine Corps veteran killed by police in the fall of 2011.
The actor who plays Chamberlain in the film, Frankie Faison, agreed with Freeman.
“Well, I agree with Morgan,” he said after Hill asked him for his thoughts on policing and the push to defund the police. “I’m certainly not in favor of defunding the policemen.”
It’s worth noting Hill vehemently disagrees with both actors.
In an Instagram post featuring Freeman and Faison’s comments, Hill wrote: “To be clear, I’m an avid supporter of defunding police and the ideas behind the [Abolish the Police] movement. However, this interview further affirms that the terminology we’re using to describe the reallocation of police funding to other community-based services is polarizing and prohibits the movement from gathering more support.”
Although he doesn’t embrace the movement to defund police, Freeman has voiced support for addressing instances of police violence. Earlier this year, the 84-year-old star donated $1 million to the University of Mississippi to establish its Center for Evidence-Based Policing and Reform.
Leo Terrell, a civil rights attorney, applauded Freeman for his remarks, noting the celebrity will likely face criticism from others in Hollywood.
“Morgan Freeman is in that Hollywood elite, so he’s going to get some blowback,” Terrell told Fox News. “I applaud him for speaking out, because it shatters this ridiculous concept that we think alike; we all hate the police. We don’t hate the police. We love the police, because 98% of them — maybe 99% — they protect us. Twenty-four seven, when we’re asleep at night, they’re out there protecting us.”
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