“Hatred is not the norm” 98-year-old icon Dick van Dyke endorses Kamala Harris
Fairly or unfairly, it’s thought that people get more right-wing as they age. This is often a point of contention among younger voters. But Dick van Dyke is one of the oldest people in showbusiness at 98 years old, and he’s endorsing Kamala Harris for president.
The Mary Poppins star took to YouTube to make the announcement. “You may remember I used to sing and dance and fall down a lot,” he told the audience. Van Dyke has been entertaining people since the ’60s and more than qualifies as Hollywood royalty at this point. His video was pointedly titled “VOTE!! @kamalaharris”.
Van Dyke went on to explain that 50 years ago, he shared a podium with none other than Martin Luther King. There, he had read the piece “A Most Non-Political Speech” by Twilight Zone creator Rod Sterling. “I got it out the other day and I think it means as much today, if not more, than it did then, so if you don’t mind, I’d like to read it,” Van Dyke said.
He read out an important portion of the speech. It went,
“Hatred is not the norm. Prejudice is not the norm. Suspicion, dislike, jealousy, scapegoating, none of those are the transcendent facets of the human personality. They are diseases. They are the cancers of the soul. They are the infectious and contagious viruses that have been breeding humanity for years. “
He was, of course, speaking about the dangerous rhetoric spewed out by Donald Trump and his supporters. He went on, “To those who tell us that the inequality of the human animal is a necessary evil, we must respond by simply saying that first, it is evil, but it’s not necessary. We prove it by reaffirming our faith.”
After reading, Van Dyke said, “A lot’s happened. Not so much as Martin Luther dreamed of, but it’s a start.” He thanked everyone for watching and signed off.
Van Dyke has been endorsing progressive candidates for years. In 2016 and 2020, he supported Bernie Sanders, and he’s been open about his dislike for Donald Trump. While speaking about Sanders on CNN back in 2016, he described Trump as “a magnet to all the hidden racists and xenophobes in the country.” And in the years since, Trump has if anything gotten even more racist.
Dick Van Dyke is one in a long line of beloved celebrities who are supporting Harris. She’s already got the endorsement of Taylor Swift, Jennifer Lopez, Beyonce, Julia Roberts, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and more. The vote is currently too close to call, but many, many people—of all ages—are hoping for a Kamala Harris win.
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