From America’s fierce attachment to guns to the staggering statistics on police killings, there are a few aspects of U.S. culture that Chiwetel Ejiofor can’t quite understand.
The British actor, who nabbed an Oscar nomination for his performance in “12 Years A Slave,” told HuffPost Live that restrictions on weaponry are much tougher on the other side of the pond.
“When you’re raised in a place like England, where there’s a very limited amount of guns and so, consequently, a very limited amount of gun crimes, it very quickly becomes nonsensical to think that people should have loads of guns,” he told host Karamo Brown. “But [America] is a different culture when it comes to guns than where I come from. … The idea of guns somehow in America is a completely different construct. It’s not one that I can completely get my head around. And I never will be able to.”
Ejiofor credited the gun lobby for the inaction on gun control, noting the political sway of the organization and “corrupt” nature of the system. The actor said he was surprised to see the movement for control legislation reach a standstill after the “horrific” shooting in Newtown, Connecticut.
“I certainly thought that after Sandy Hook, there was bound to be such a public outpouring … that they would have to change, have to effectively change and for good,” he said. “I think it was devastating [and] shocking that the machinery of government wasn’t able to effect proper change after that.”
As for the recent controversy over police violence — that’s yet another aspect Ejiofor can’t comprehend.
“The police don’t kill people, that’s not their job. It’s not their job to kill people. It’s their job to protect people, and that’s it,” he said.
Watch the full HuffPost Live conversation with “Z for Zachariah” star Chiwetel Ejiofor here.
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