Cnn
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Hollywood actor Robert de Niro used his prize acceptance speech at the Cannes Film Festival to criticize US President Donald Trump.
From Niro, 81, received the Palme d’Or Lifetime Achievement Award on Tuesday at the event in the south of France when he called Trump as “Philistine President”.
“In my country, we are fighting like hell for democracy that we have taken for granted,” Niro told an audience including some of the biggest names in Showbiz.
“This affects us all here, because the arts are democratic, art is inclusive and brings together people, as this evening. Art seeks truth. Art embraces diversity, and that is why art is a threat,” added Niro, who is a frank critic of the American president.
“This is why we are leading autocrats and fascists. The American Philistine President himself appointed the head of one of our first cultural institutions (the Kennedy Center). He reduced the financing and support of arts, human sciences and education, “he continued.
De Niro also targeted Trump’s reported plan to impose prices on produced films outside the United States
“You cannot put a price on creativity, but apparently, you can put a price there. Of course, this is unacceptable. All these attacks are unacceptable,” he said.
“And this is not only an American problem, it is a global problem. Unlike a film, we cannot sit everything and watch. We must act, and we must act now,” said Niro.
He ended his speech with a call to people to resist Trump “without violence, but with a great passion and determination”.
“It is time for all those who care about the freedom to organize, to protest and when there are elections, of course, to vote.,” Said Niro.
“Tonight, and for the next 11 days, we show our strength and our commitment by celebrating art in this glorious festival. Freedom, equality, fraternity. ”
De Niro played in a campaign announcement for former American president Joe Biden in May 2024 and criticized Trump several times, including calling him a “clown”.