Angelina Jolie has shared a special message during COVID-19 pandemic, urging people “to love each other” and “check in with each other.”
The 44-year-old-actress spoke with California Surgeon General Dr. Nadine Burke Harris in a video conference for Time, where she is also a contributing editor.
With stay-at-home orders in place in almost every state in the country, Burke Harris said it was important for people to reach out to each other, to which Jolie agreed.
“I think it is so important that people hear that,” Jolie said. “To love each other, check in with each other. Be there, be a support group, keep your eyes open whether you are a teacher or a friend.”
The actress continued, “I really do hope people hear this, and they do reach out, and they do pay more attention, and they are not sitting in a moment when they think, ‘Well maybe, but it’s not my business.’ Because those kids aren’t going to school right now, and teachers can’t see the bruises and people aren’t identifying what is happening within some homes.”
Burke Harris responded, “All of the research shows that the single most powerful antidote to the impacts of trauma and adversity is nurturing, caring relationships with others — safe, stable and nurturing relationships.”
The surgeon general also pointed out it was important to believe victims of domestic violence, saying, “All you have to do is be there for a person. All you have to do is believe them when a victim comes forward.”
“You don’t have to fix it, you don’t have to solve it. You don’t have to worry about not being enough,” Burke Harris said. “You just have to be willing to be there and listen and to be that shoulder and those open arms.”
