America Ferrera stuns on Glamour's Women of the Year cover as Barbie star talks impoverished childhood: 'It was isolating and embarrassing to be hungry at school'
America Ferrera's stirring speech about the inequities of being a woman in the Barbie movie struck a note with millions of women around the world.
The passion she spoke with in the blockbuster seems to reflect many of her goals for improving the lot of women and other vulnerable people, which she describes in a very personal essay.
The 39-year-old actress has been named one of Glamour's Women of the Year.
The Barbie star revealed that inequity has always been a part of her life.
America was brought up by a single mother and said she learned that there were some people who had less than others at a very early age.
Personal essay: America Ferrera, 39, talks about her twin passions, acting and activism in a very personal essay for Glamour magazine
'When I was in fifth grade, we lost our assistance with meals at school' she wrote.
'It was isolating and embarrassing to be hungry at school, unable to focus on learning and socializing.'
'Even at that age—and even without the wider context of the world's inequalities—I understood that it wasn't because of anything I did or deserved. I knew it was unfair and not right for a kid to be hungry while there were clearly resources all around that could help fix the problem.'
For America's cover, the publication was inspired by the actress' name, putting her in a red leather one shoulder dress, reclining on a blue bench against a blue background with the New York skyline and the title and headline in white letters, 'Glamour, America Ferrera, Woman of the Year.'
At age 17, the budding star's dreams were beginning to come true. She was cast in two films back to back.
'I had always believed in myself because my mother had raised me to believe that, in the United States of America, being a poor, short, brown, fat daughter of immigrants did not preclude my dreams.'
'If anything, it made me an underdog, and there’s not much that the USA loves more than a good underdog story. I was determined to build a career in an industry that didn’t reflect people like me. I refused to be deterred.'
She had also been taught the importance of getting an education, and enrolled in the University of Southern California, but struggled to balance her burgeoning career and her studies, and she even considered quitting acting.
Speech: America's stirring speech about the inequities of being a woman in the Barbie movie struck a note with millions of women around the world. The passion she spoke with in the blockbuster seems to reflect many of her goals for improving the lot of women and others
Cover: For America's cover, the publication was inspired by the actress' name, putting her in a red leather one shoulder dress, reclining on a blue bench against a blue background with the New York skyline and the title and headline in white letters
History: She made history in 2007 when she became the first Latina to win the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for Ugly Betty
A conversation with a beloved professor helped her make an important decision.
'He told me he had a mentee, a young Latina student, at a local high school in East Los Angeles. She had asked him, a white male professor, to watch my first film—Real Women Have Curves, about an 18-year-old girl also from East Los Angeles struggling between her desire to go to college and the desire of her mother for her to stay home and work to help support the family. She wanted him to understand what she was up against at home in her own life.'
'He then asked her parents to watch the film to understand how they could support her dreams of education. He explained to me that my movie was life-changing for this young girl and had allowed her to have a conversation that she had never thought possible.'
'He allowed me to see storytelling as a powerful tool for change. And from that moment on, I understood that my dreams didn’t have to be exclusive to one another—I could pursue what I wanted and also use the stories I told, and the platform I had, to impact the lives of others.'
The actress continued to focus on her career, winning roles in popular films such as The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, Lords of Dogtown and Under the Same Moon.
Lifechanging: America's life changed when she was cast in 2002's real women have curves. She revealed it helped change the lives of other young women who used the movie to explain the challenges they faced in their own lives
Awards: America is expected to be on the short list for the 2023/2024 awards season for her role as the frustrated wife, mother and Mattel employee, Gloria, in Barbie. If she is nominated for an Oscar, she will be only the 13th Latina to receive that recognition
She made history in 2007 when she became the first Latina to win the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for Ugly Betty.
America is expected to be on the short list for the 2023/2024 awards season for her role as the frustrated wife, mother and Mattel employee, Gloria, in Barbie. If she is nominated for an Oscar, she will be only the 13th Latina to receive that recognition.
In 2008, during the Hollywood writers strike, the ALMA Award winner turned her attention to politics, and began supporting Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign.
'I wanted to call out how unfairly Hillary was being treated: what people said about her, the conversations that focused on her clothing or the tone of her voice instead of her long career that included improving the lives of countless children and their families.'
She also learned some powerful lessons while on the campaign trail.
'Through campaigning, my confidence in my own advocacy grew. I became driven towards the Latino community and our engagement in democracy. I was born and raised in a matriarchal home and understand deeply how Latina mothers and women influence what happens in a household,' she wrote of her experience.
'It is so often the women who carry so much of the responsibility to create access and opportunity. But also, it is the women who are given the least resources to achieve it.'
Following the 2016 election and the 2017 Women's March, the activist/actress joined forces with her husband, actor, writer and director Ryan Piers Williams and old friend Wilber Valderrama to found Harness, a nonprofit organization building community among artists, activists, and culture-makers.
Advocacy: Working on Hillary Clinton's 2008 presidential campaign helped the actress gain skills she uses today. 'I became driven towards the Latino community and our engagement in democracy,' she wrote
Community: America has co-founded two non-profit community organizations. Poderistas, dedicated to amplifying Latina voices and building community, and Harness, a nonprofit organization building community among artists, activists, and culture-makers
Family: America shares two children, Sebastian (Baz), five, and Lucia, three, with her husband, actor, writer and director Ryan Piers Williams
She also helped found another non-profit, Poderistas, dedicated to amplifying Latina voices and building community.
America and her husband are the parents of two, Sebastian (Baz), five, and Lucia, three, and they are passing their legacy of action and activism to the next generation.
'My deepest hope is that the future for women looks like genuine safety: physically, emotionally, and mentally,' she explained.
'My commitment is to keep fighting and showing up in beloved community where women find strength and courage in each other, to continue the work toward the change that we all deserve.'
