HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Actress Amber Heard has come out as a lesbian.
The Pineapple Express star spoke openly about her sexuality Friday night at a Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) party in Los Angeles, where she was joined by her partner, Tasya van Ree.
"I am acutely aware of the role that the media plays in influencing public opinion and influencing society, and with that awareness comes the burden of responsibility," Heard told the website AfterEllen.com when asked about her involvement with GLAAD.
She continued, "I think when I became aware of my role in the media, I had to ask myself an important question 'Am I part of the problem?' And I think that when millions and millions of hard-working, tax paying Americans are denied their rights and denied their equality you have to ask yourself what are the factors that are an epidemic problem and that’s what this is. Injustice can never be stood for. It always must be fought against and I just was sick of it being a problem."
Heard praised the organization for making it easier for gays and lesbians to reveal their true identity.
"I think GLAAD is one of the many reasons that I, as a 24-year-old, can come out," she said. "I think that organizations like GLAAD make that possible because if it weren't for opinions being changed, people being influenced, people being engaged to do the right thing, then there would be no prerogative for anyone to come out."
"I hate the idea of a label just as much as anyone else but I'm with who I'm with, I love who I love and I'm if not a better actress than I was yesterday and my personal life should have no effect on that," she added. "I think that the injustice of people staying in the closet is more than I can bear with a clear conscience and I couldn't sleep at night if I was a part of that problem, if I was part of the lies."
Heard also gushed about van Ree, who works as a photographer and artist.
"She's so beautiful," Heard said of her girlfriend. "I mean, you'd have to be crazy not to want to go out with her!"
Also see: Amber Heard Pictures
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