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Drew Barrymore and Brooke Shields have a no nonsense discussion about childhood exploitation

Viewers are praising Barrymore for being able to provide a safe space for difficult conversations.

drew barrymore, brooke shields, pretty baby hulu
"The Drew Barrymore Show"/Twitter, @carolineframke/Twitter

Host Drew Barrymore discusses childhood exploitation in Hollywood with Brooke Shields.

Drew Barrymore is the master of delivering raw, intimate and thought-provoking interviews in a refreshingly sincere way. But across the board, folks are feeling like her discussion with actress and model Brooke Shields hits a little different.

Both former child stars got their own personal glimpse into the darkness of Hollywood at an early age—Barrymore being introduced to drugs at only 9 years old, and Shields’ entire career being ignited by a role in which she was an object of sexual desire when she was 12.

Now, at age 48 and 57 and in their full autonomy, the two women reflected on those experiences on “The Drew Barrymore Show,” in what people are hailing as an “intense,” yet ultimately “powerful” and “healing conversation.”


One particular gem occurred when Barrymore asked Shields how being sexually exploited during childhood affected her feeling toward the #MeToo movement.

“This is gonna seem like a very weird turn,” Barrymore said in her signature move of sitting close to Shields on the couch. “But how did you feel about the Me Too movement, in the sense of, I didn't feel like I had a dog in that race.”

She continued: “I didn't feel like I could speak to it, because I experienced things that were so inappropriate at such a young age...We were children. How did that movement affect you? Did you feel like you could speak to it?”

Similarly, Shields felt like she didn’t know where she “fell on the spectrum of it,” adding that “being made to feel culpable” made it additionally hard to interpret her experience.

“You know, you victim-shame yourself,” she shared.

Shields also added that this behavior towards children was so commonplace in the industry that it even felt “appropriate,” causing her to deny much of what she was going through at the time.

This, of course, is not a feeling exclusive to only celebrities. As someone wrote in response to the clip, “When things happen to us as children it’s easy to bury it, brush it off, put it in the back of your head. Sometimes questioning if it happened because as adults it’s hard to remember and often too painful.”

For both women, it wouldn’t become clear that something wrong had happened to them until they became mothers themselves, a kind of hindsight that many parents can probably relate to.

This prompted Barrymore to ask, “What do we say to young girls who are out there on Instagram, on social media, doing the same things we did?”

Shields’s answer is both astute and wise.

“They’re not gonna listen,” she says. “But, you know, they’re gonna have to process it on their own. Because they think they’re in control...So you’re gonna have to try to balance it. But, you just keep talking. Keep talking to them.”

It’s worth noting, as many viewers pointed out, that having those difficult conversations is much more achievable when in a safe and sensitive environment. This is why people are praising Barrymore for creating this sort of intimacy that other talk shows sometimes fall short of.

“Remarkable how Drew is facilitating so many open conversations that only ever happen behind closed doors, if at all,” one person wrote.

Kudos to these two women for having the courage to speak openly. Indeed, it’s not always easy, but transparency often helps others not feel alone, and it helps to keep history from repeating itself.

“Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields,” a documentary which documents the actress’s journey from a sexualized young girl to a woman who embraces her identity and voice, is now available to watch on Hulu.

Planet

Easy (and free!) ways to save the ocean

The ocean is the heart of our planet. It needs our help to be healthy.

Ocean Wise

Volunteers at a local shoreline cleanup

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The ocean covers over 71% of the Earth’s surface and serves as our planet’s heart. Ocean currents circulate vital heat, moisture, and nutrients around the globe to influence and regulate our climate, similar to the human circulatory system. Cool, right?

Our ocean systems provide us with everything from fresh oxygen to fresh food. We need it to survive and thrive—and when the ocean struggles to function healthfully, the whole world is affected.

Pollution, overfishing, and climate change are the three biggest challenges preventing the ocean from doing its job, and it needs our help now more than ever. Humans created the problem; now humans are responsible for solving it.

#BeOceanWise is a global rallying cry to do what you can for the ocean, because we need the ocean and the ocean needs us. If you’re wondering how—or if—you can make a difference, the answer is a resounding YES. There are a myriad of ways you can help, even if you don’t live near a body of water. For example, you can focus on reducing the amount of plastic you purchase for yourself or your family.

Another easy way to help clean up our oceans is to be aware of what’s known as the “dirty dozen.” Every year, scientists release an updated list of the most-found litter scattered along shorelines. The biggest culprit? Single-use beverage and food items such as foam cups, straws, bottle caps, and cigarette butts. If you can’t cut single-use plastic out of your life completely, we understand. Just make sure to correctly recycle plastic when you are finished using it. A staggering 3 million tons of plastic ends up in our oceans annually. Imagine the difference we could make if everyone recycled!

The 2022 "Dirty Dozen" ListOcean Wise

If you live near a shoreline, help clean it up! Organize or join an effort to take action and make a positive impact in your community alongside your friends, family, or colleagues. You can also tag @oceanwise on social if you spot a beach that needs some love. The location will be added to Ocean Wise’s system so you can submit data on the litter found during future Shoreline Cleanups. This data helps Ocean Wise work with businesses and governments to stop plastic pollution at its source. In Canada, Ocean Wise data helped inform a federal ban on unnecessary single-use plastics. Small but important actions like these greatly help reduce the litter that ends up in our ocean.

Ocean Wise, a conservation organization on a mission to restore and protect our oceans, is focused on empowering and educating everyone from individuals to governments on how to protect our waters. They are making conservation happen through five big initiatives: monitoring and protecting whales, fighting climate change and restoring biodiversity, innovating for a plastic-free ocean, protecting and restoring fish stocks, and finally, educating and empowering youth. The non-profit believes that in order to rebuild a resilient and vibrant ocean within the next ten years, everyone needs to take action.

Become an Ocean Wise ally and share your knowledge with others. The more people who know how badly the ocean needs our help, the better! Now is a great time to commit to being a part of something bigger and get our oceans healthy again.

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The hobby has caught the attention of law enforcement and government agencies because urban waterways are a popular place for criminals to drop weapons and stolen items after committing a crime. In 2019, a magnet fisherman in Michigan pulled up an antique World War I mortar grenade and the bomb squad had to be called out to investigate.


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