Shailene Woodley Responds To Backlash Over Shared Melania Trump Statement
Shailene Woodley has doubled down on her praise for Melania Trump's statement following the assassination attempt on the latter's husband, former President Donald Trump.
The Hollywood actress, 32, recently sat down for an interview with Bustle and discussed the aftermath of what she thought was a harmless move she did on social media, a day after 20-year-old shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks tried to kill Trump during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania on July 13. The attack resulted in the deaths of two rally attendees.
In her interview published Monday, Woodley explained that she decided to share the statement Trump's wife made because she found it "beautiful." After Donald survived the assassination attempt, Melania released a statement calling the gunman a "monster" but also urged the public to embrace "love, compassion, and kindness."
The "Divergent" actress, who is known for her environmental activism rather than political commentary, explained that she shared the first page of Melania's two-part statement because she felt it showed the human side of the former president.
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"The first page was very much like, 'Look, underneath the political mask is a man, a grandpa, who comes home to his children, his grandchildren, and plays music. The man underneath that mask is my husband,'" Woodley told Bustle.
She recounted her reaction after reading the statement, saying, "I read it and I was like, 'This is so beautiful.' I was in circles of people that I deeply respect — friends, colleagues, progressive, very intelligent thinkers, shakers and movers — and many of them were saying, 'He missed! F***ing assassin missed! Maybe it was a setup. Maybe it was a conspiracy.'"
Woodley then expressed shock at the tone of these conversations, adding, "I was going, 'Have we forgotten that two human lives were taken?' Two people died. That is sad. That is devastating. I could not understand how people were speaking about something with such passion for death."
The "Big Little Lies" star noted that she didn't expect the reaction her repost received, explaining that she was not seeking controversy by sharing it. "I posted that letter because I thought it was a beautiful message of human compassion, and then I forgot about it because I have a life and I don't live for what social media says," she said.
Despite the backlash, Woodley remains firm in her stance, insisting that her repost was a response to what she saw as a moment of empathy in a time of tragedy. The backlash, she said, "made me shake my head." She added that the controversy has since prompted her to reevaluate her use of social media.
Woodley has not endorsed political candidates ahead of the upcoming elections. However, she was a vocal supporter of Bernie Sanders in 2016, according to Entertainment Weekly.
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