By Victoria Rutigliano
Danny Glover sat down with members in and around the Quinnipiac community Tuesday night to discuss the start of Black History Month and how he’s using his platform to speak about change.
Known for his roles on camera from movies such as “Lethal Weapon,” “The Color Purple,” and “Angels in the Outfield,” Glover said he and his mom both agreed his fame was meant to go beyond the movies he performed in. This agreement was what brought him to Quinnipiac’s campus.
Glover discussed how his passion didn’t come from acting, but by identifying and looking up to people like his parents, Bob Moses, and several civil rights movements.
“I want to be of some use,” Glover said. “At the beginning, I felt that I was of some use and the idea of being a child of the civil rights movement and how much I identified with those moments.”
He discussed using his acting, like in “Master Harold,” as a way to start a discussion not just about black people, but about the world.
“It gave me a path, it gave me a way,” Glover said. “Not only could I talk about the system of Apartheid in the most brilliant writing. At the same time I could express about how I feel about the world and the justice of the world.”
Don Sawyer, the interim associate vice president for academic affairs and chief diversity officer at Quinnipiac, spoke on the importance of having someone like Glover, who’s had a strong presence on TV, talk about ways he’s reaching out to help others.
“I mean a lot of people know him as an actor but not a lot know necessarily about his activism,” Sawyer said. “You don’t have to just be an actor or just be an activist but you can blend your career with also the support of the local community.”