Danny Glover is not shy about his opinions or his politics. The star of classic films like Predator 2, The Color Purple, and all four Lethal Weapon movies, Glover has made himself a Hollywood establishment and earned a net worth of approximately $40 million.
Despite being a wealthy celebrity, Glover dedicates his free time to issues involving economic, racial, and social justice. His resume as a political activist is as extensive as his Hollywood credits list. Soon after his training in the Black actors' workshop at the American Conservatory Theater, Glover began working consistently. But some fans must wonder what makes Lethal Weapon star Danny Glover a bona fide celebrity activist?
10 Danny Glover Comes From A Working Class Family
Glover's parents were working class black activists in San Francisco. Both worked for the United States Post Office and were active in the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). They were also members of the American Postal Workers Union. Today, Glover is known for being very pro-union.
9 Danny Glover's Activism Began In College
Glover went to San Francisco State University but did not graduate. However, while there he joined the Black Student Union (BSU) and worked with them and other organizations like the Third World Liberation Front (TWLF) and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT.)
8 Danny Glover Helped Advance The Field Of African American Studies
Together, the BSU, TWLF, and AFT coordinated a five month long series of student-led strikes demanding the creation of a department dedicated to African American and ethnic studies. As a result, SF State became the first school to create a Department of Black Studies. The strike was the longest-running student walkout in American history.
7 Danny Glover Has Gotten Arrested For Protesting
While protesting against genocide in Darfur in 2004, Glover was arrested outside of the Sudanese embassy for “unlawful assembly and disorderly conduct.” Glover was also arrested in 2010 along with 10 others during a labor strike outside of the headquarters of Sodexo, a food service company.
6 Danny Glover Uses His Celebrity Status To Bring Attention To The Issues
Glover uses his Hollywood clout to bring attention to major political issues all the time. One such time was in 1999 when Glover, drawing on his experience as a cab driver in San Francisco, brought attention to the issue of New York cabbies refusing to give rides to black passengers. As a result, it became city policy to suspend any cab driver who was caught discriminating against black riders.
5 Danny Glover Met With World Leaders
Somewhat controversially, Glover met with then-Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez in 2006 along with Cornel West, another well-known activist and Ivy League professor. The trip was arranged by calypso singer Harry Belafonte, who is also a prominent celebrity activist. Glover later became a board member for Venezuela’s media network TeleSUR. Although controversial, Glover still supports the Venezuelan government and does not trust the U.S. government’s intentions with the Latin American nation.
4 Danny Glover Called George W. Bush Racist
“As Texas's governor, Bush led a penitentiary system that executed more people than all the other U.S. states together. And most of the people who died were Afro-Americans or Hispanics.” These were his exact words about the former president while he was still in office. Glover was an outspoken opponent to all of Bush’s policies, especially the invasion of Iraq.
3 Danny Glover Supported The Occupy Movement
When Occupy Wallstreet began on September 17, 2011, protests and occupations exploded across the country. On November 1, 2011, Glover spoke to a crowd of Occupy Oakland activists the day before they led a successful general strike that shut down the Port of Oakland. The action is considered one of the largest accomplishments of the Occupy movement.
2 Danny Glover Felt The Bern
Glover has campaigned for several progressive presidential candidates, like Dennis Kucinich and John Edwards. In both 2016 and 2020, he endorsed and campaigned for Vermont senator Bernie Sanders when he ran for the Democratic nomination. In 2016, Glover spoke at Bernie’s first campaign rally in California.
1 Danny Glover Works With Other Prominent Activists
Along with his trip to Venezuela with West and Belafonte and his campaigning with Bernie Sanders, Glover has worked with several other big-name activists. He co-authored a letter with Noam Chomsky, Mark Ruffalo, and director Oliver Stone urging French citizens to vote for Jean-Luc Melechon for president. In 2018 he had a supporting role in the film Sorry To Bother You directed by musician and leftist activist Boots Riley. The film tells the story of workers at a corrupt telemarketing firm unionizing. While protesting the Iraq War, he gave a speech alongside Dolores Huerta, who helped create the union United Farm Workers with Caesar Chavez.
One ten-entry listicle is not enough to do justice to the extensive work of Danny Glover. His work for unions, black liberation, international liberation, and ending war cannot be summarized so quickly. Glover’s contributions to the world are immense. Both on and off the screen. Even if one disagrees with his politics, no one cannot deny that Glover has made history.