Amandla Stenberg, known best for appearing in The Hunger Games as Rue, took over the Teen Vogue Snapchat on Thursday and took the mag’s friends on a quick tour of her day before expressing her feelings on representation in Hollywood right now.
“It’s a really, really hard thing to be silenced,” Stenberg explained in the snaps, later compiled into one video and posted to the star’s Tumblr page. “It’s deeply bruising to fight against your identity and mold yourself into shapes you shouldn’t be in.”
She goes on to say, “As someone who identifies as a black, bisexual woman, I’ve been through it and it hurts and it’s awkward and uncomfortable,” before praising other women, like Solange Knowles, Ava DuVernay, and friend Willow Smith, for their fearlessness in being who they are.
“We cannot be suppressed. We are meant to express our joy and our love and our tears and be big and bold and definitely not easy to swallow,” she said.
This is not the first time Stenberg has gotten frank about representation in the industry. In a video project done for her class and later posted to her Tumblr account, the 17-year-old star criticized many of Hollywood’s stars for appropriating black culture. She wasn’t afraid to name some of the biggest names in entertainment for their missteps while educating the masses on why this is such an issue.
In her interview with Solange Knowles for her Teen Vogue cover, Stenberg addresses the video and her role as a voice for these issues that have been steadily gaining steam in today’s conversations.
“There are still moments now where I’m like, ‘Whoa, this is a lot of pressure,’" she said. "But it’s worth it because when people come to me and say, ‘I’m more comfortable in my identity because of you,’ or ‘I feel like you’ve given me a voice,’ that’s the most powerful thing ever.”