CSI ACTRESS DARCY
HALSEY A PROUD LIBERTARIAN
by Thomas M. Sipos, managing editor.
[June 25, 2007]
[HollywoodInvestigator.com]
Darcy Halsey hails from Navy heroes and Republicans and hippies. She works in Hollywood's famously progressive film community. With
such a checkered heritage, it's no surprise that this actress is a registered
Libertarian!
"I'm originally from New
Hampshire, a very libertarian state," said Halsey, whose views mirror the
LP's old platform. "I believe the government should stay out of personal
affairs and not micro-manage our lives. It should not regulate marriage
laws or laws on reproductive rights. I believe across-the-board in
an individual's right to choose, which applies to a person's right to bear
arms, although that's not a right that I exercise.
"I support the party's stance on cutting taxes, and holding the government
accountable for its destruction of the environment and contributing so
heavily to pollution. I love that the party believes in non-intervention
in regards to war, and only going to war in self-defense."
Halsey
registered Libertarian in 2000, switching
from Republican. That was also about when her acting career took
off. Her recent credits include Behind the
Smile (with Damon Wayans & Jim Belushi), Material
Girls (with Hilary Duff & Anjelica Huston), and an appearance
in 2003 on the "Jackpot" episode of CSI. Her newest film is Drifter, from the award-winning
director of The
Delivery, Roel Reine.
But it was Halsey's performance in the internationally-acclaimed, 2005
antiwar play, What I Heard About Iraq,
that greatly fueled her distrust of government. "Before this play,
I was one of those middle-of-the-road people who didn't seek information.
Never felt very political. Had no idea about the extent of lies that
the American public had been told to justify the war. I was blown
away at what I learned."
Director Simon Levy based his play on Eliot Weinberger's "What I Heard
About Iraq," an article reprinted in What
Happened Here: Bush Chronicles. Levy's play gathers the scattered
bits of Iraqi news reporting from the past 17 years, juxtaposing the contradictory
statements of American policymakers.
"I didn't know about the numbers of Iraqi casualties," said Halsey. "The military casualties, the lies leading up to the war, i.e. the WMDs,
the use of depleted uranium in our bombs and bullets, the use of napalm,
our administration's callous attitude toward rebuilding Iraq, the focus
on money and oil, the extent of torture in Abu Ghraib, the destruction
of Falluja. I don't have a solution as to how to withdraw our troops. All I know is that many innocent lives are lost every day, and every moment
that we occupy Iraq the situation worsens."
Yet no one can accuse Halsey of not supporting or understanding our troops. She is "first cousin, three times removed" of Fleet
Admiral Halsey, whom she describes as one of only four Fleet Admirals
in US history. "The Japanese surrendered on his ship in the Pacific,"
she said. "Paul
McCartney wrote the song 'Uncle
Albert' about him." Her grandfather and uncles also served in
the Navy, and "would not be thrilled about this play. They'd call
me
a 'bleeding heart liberal.' However, this play is not political. It's about
the cruel acts that we all commit against each other every day. That
is what needs to stop.
"In doing this play, my life changed. I've taken responsibility for the
situation in the country and our government and our actions overseas. I've started an activist group that meets once a month and discusses a
variety of issues, such as the presidential candidates and their stances,
the environment, L.A. water issues, and non-violent protest. We've
worked with Planned Parenthood. And I will always be up for a peace
rally."
Halsey may have inherited some of her activist fervor from her parents,
whom she describes as former hippies. "My father protested the Vietnam
War, but as he's gotten older, he's gotten more conservative. I was
pretty conservative growing up, having adopted my father's politics."
Today both father and daughter are registered Libertarians.
Halsey doesn't hide her Libertarian affiliation in largely Democratic Hollywood,
yet she finds few other Libertarians in the film community. She ascribes
it to ignorance. "I do not think the majority of people are clear
on what the Libertarian Party stands for. Next meeting [at her activist group], I'll do a short presentation on the
Libertarian
Party and their stances on political and social issues. A lot of
people don't know about it."
Copyright 2007 by HollywoodInvestigator.com.

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