The “No Kings” protests that swept the nation this weekend made Billy Porter “feel hopeful again.”
The actor and musician was among a group of celebrities at a rally on Friday, March 27, outside the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC ahead of the protests.
Actress and activist Jane Fonda organized the rally dubbed “Artists United for Our Freedoms,” in response to the Trump administration’s attacks on freedom of expression in the performing arts, the media, and late-night television.
“When Jane Fonda calls, you answer,” Porter said Saturday during a sit-down interview with Rev. Al Sharpton on MS Now’s Politics Nation.
The actor added, “Many of us were there to talk about the dismantling of the arts and how authoritarian governments go after the arts first.”
Others attending the rally included legendary musician Joan Baez, folk singer Crys Matthews, singer-songwriter Maggie Rogers, actor Sam Waterston, and former CNN Anchor Jim Acosta, according to News From the States.
The Kennedy Center has continued to make headlines since Trump attached his name to the venue, installed a new board of trustees, and directed the facility to close for renovations after a string of famous performers, including Issa Rae, canceled events there following Trump’s takeover.
“It was lovely to be a part of something that felt like the solution, or getting our way to a solution, as opposed to just talking about stuff,” Porter shared.
The Emmy-winning actor said the arts are one of the first things “fascists” attack because they consider freedom of expression “dangerous.”
Porter made history in 2019, when he became the first openly gay Black man to win a lead actor in a drama series Emmy Award. He took home the trophy for his role on the FX series Pose about New York City’s LGBTQ ball culture.
The actor told Sharpton daring and diverse projects like Pose are disappearing as media owners bow to the Trump administration’s conservative agenda.
“I have noticed the opportunities slowly drying up for the work that I do,” the actor said.
“The Midwest CBS shows, the cop shows, and all of that stuff still exist,” he continued. “But when it’s time to talk about heart, when it’s time to talk about connection, when it’s time to talk about people that don’t look like everybody else… there’s not a lot of that work going on right now.”
Porter added that the massive “No Kings” protests gave him hope that Americans are tiring of an administration that “doesn’t follow the rules, and doesn’t follow the laws.”
He urged the public to “stay vigilant” and said, “We must all come together and save the arts.”
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