"Editors’ note: The actress deleted her Instagram posts this summer in response to online harassment. Here she speaks out for the first time...
"I want to live in a world where children
of color don’t spend their entire adolescence wishing to be white. I
want to live in a world where women are not subjected to scrutiny for
their appearance, or their actions, or their general existence. I want
to live in a world where people of all races, religions, socioeconomic
classes, sexual orientations, gender identities and abilities are seen
as what they have always been: human beings.
This is the world I want to live in. And this is the world that I will continue to work toward.
These
are the thoughts that run through my head every time I pick up a script
or a screenplay or a book. I know the opportunity given to me is rare. I
know that I now belong to a small group of privileged people who get to
tell stories for a living, stories that are heard and seen and digested
by a world that for so long has tasted only one thing. I know how
important that is. And I am not giving up.
You might know me as Kelly.
I am the first woman of color to have a leading role in a “Star Wars” movie.
I am the first Asian woman to appear on the cover of Vanity Fair.
