Melissa Barrera is breaking her silence after being fired from Scream VII.
“First and foremost I condemn Anti-Semitism and Islamophobia. I condemn hate and prejudice of any kind against any group of people,” Barrera said in a statement shared on Instagram Stories.
Barrera’s post comes after Spyglass Media dropped her from the horror franchise for her social media posts about the Israel-Hamas conflict.
“As a Latina, a proud Mexicana, I feel the responsibility of having a platform that allows me the privilege of being heard, and therefore I have tried to use it to raise awareness about issues I care about and to lend my voice to those in need,” Barrera’s statement continued. “Every person on this earth- regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation or socio-economic status- deserves equal human rights, dignity and, of course, freedom.
“I believe a group of people are NOT their leadership, and that no governing body should be above criticism. I pray day and night for no more deaths, for no more violence, and for peaceful co-existence. I will continue to speak out for those that need it most and continue to advocate for peace and safety, for human rights and freedom.”
Barrera ended her statement with the following: “Silence is not an option for me.”
In a statement after the news Barrera was not going to continue in her role of Sam Carpenter, Spyglass Media noted the reasons they had dropped the Mexican actress.
“Spyglass’ stance is unequivocally clear: We have zero tolerance for antisemitism or the incitement of hate in any form, including false references to genocide, ethnic cleansing, Holocaust distortion or anything that flagrantly crosses the line into hate speech,” read the statement.
A day after Barrera was axed from Scream VII, it was confirmed that Jenna Ortega would also not be returning to the horror flick.