While promoting the second season of “Divorce” this week in New York City, Sarah Jessica Parker, fresh off the plane from LA, where she presented a Golden Globe Award, had a lot to say about being at the launch of #TimesUp. “It was impressive,” she told us. “It has been impressive to watch it come together because we were dubious that it could happen in the time that was presented to us. It was just a very short period of time in which the work organized itself, with a lot of hard work that came from a lot of women. I think that the experience was amazing, and I was so proud to see the enthusiasm [at the Golden Globes] supporting the roll out. That was the official launch of Time’s Up.”
Clearly impacted by the weight of the unveiling of the Time’s Up Initiative, a coalition fighting sexual misconduct, and the experience of being in a room full of other celebrities all dressed in black to show their support, the experience was on Parker’s mind. She talked about the broader scope of the initiative and what may have gotten lost at the Golden Globes.
“I wish that everyone could have talked about, which is the meat of the matter, the fact that that Hollywood is playing just a tiny part of this conversation,” Parker said. “This goes broadly across industries. It’s an endeavor about safe work environments for women in more areas of service. We’ve seen some great articles like the New York Times piece on the women at the Ford plant. Farmworkers. People in the hotel industry. Servers in restaurants. It’s everywhere. In law. In the arts. In engineering. In academia.”
Parker continued, “It’s a very exciting time to talk about how are we going to address the chasm that exists. For some reason, there isn’t a uniform code of conduct for people in this country — men and women. This is America. The idea that there isn’t support — that people can’t look and say, ‘This is not allowed’ or ‘This is not acceptable.’ The fact there isn’t any fluidity is crazy.”
To Parker, it all boils down to one thing: the Equal Rights Amendment, a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution designed to guarantee equal rights for all citizens regardless of sex, seeking to end the legal distinctions between men and women in terms of divorce, property, employment, and other matters. “For me, it’s really about the ERA. The ERA is not just about women anymore, it’s about everybody.” She went onto say, “I’m looking forward to re-addressing the ERA because it’s about women of color, it’s about [the LGBTQ community], it’s about people that seem marginalized. It’s no longer just about women. That to me is about equality, parity, and safety. That, to me, is what I’m excited about.”
Known for the Emmy-winning role of Carrie Bradshaw in “Sex and the City,” Parker has appeared in a multitude of movies, including “Honeymoon in Vegas,” “The Family Stone,” “L.A. Story,” and “Ed Wood.” She plays Frances in the HBO series “Divorce,” which airs new episodes Sundays. Next, Parker will star as a singer facing down a grim medical diagnosis in “Best Day of My Life.” The film is expected to debut sometime this year.
