Chad Kimball

[pollster2]

Has anyone else noticed how far right Come From Away's Chad Kimball is? Take a look at his likes on Twitter. It's terrifying.

[Sutton Ross]

He's kind, loving and extremely talented. Yep, he's religious and there is nothing wrong with that. 

[JSquared2]

pollster2 said: "Has anyone else noticed how far right Come From Away's Chad Kimball is? Take a look at his likes on Twitter. It's terrifying."

Has anyone ever noticed how judgmental so many stans tend to be? It's also very terrifying.

[ZacharyC2]

Sutton Ross said: "He's kind, loving and extremely talented. Yep, he's religious and there is nothing wrong with that."

There is absolutely nothing wrong with being religious, but he replied to a tweet that called for the firing of all police officers who have committed police brutality and violence by saying that we need to defend the Seattle Police Department against this "Marxist Mob." That isn't religious, that's far right language and ideas.

Edit: I just looked through his likes, and I just wanted to say that if you do, you'll find a video of a fight on a Subway car, one guy gets a pretty bad gash on his wrist, if you don't want to see that, don't watch the video.

[MikeInTheDistrict]

So, the founders of Black Lives Matter, the organization (rather than the general movement), do apparently identify with Marxism. Some people are understandably wary of that. We have lived in a society in which politicians and others have convinced Americans that the world is a scary and dangerous place. The "War on Drugs" and "War on Crime" have been raging for decades, as have "Zero Tolerance" policies, minimum sentencing requirements, etc. Violent crime has declined almost 50% in many place in the U.S. since the 1990s, but people are more afraid than ever. There's a reason that there has been general support for militarization of the police up until this point.

I don't think it's realistic to expect most people to suddenly jump on board with defunding the police by 50% of their budget, and mass firings and potential mass exodus of police officers from the force. I support many of the changes that have been called for, but I also understand the apprehension of those who are watching this unfold and seeing the vociferous, angry voices calling for drastic, unprecedented change.

[JBroadway]

While I strongly disagree with Kimball's stance on the police, I don't think it's accurate to call this a "far right" stance. Many liberal, left-wing people do not consider police defunding or abolition to be the best way to handle police violence. The ACAB/Abolitionist/Defunding movement has only recently gained popular traction, and is still relatively fringe compared to say, the movement for gay marriage. If you had asked me 6 months ago, I probably would have argued that police abolition was a bad idea too. It's really only in the past few months that I've really become aware of the information and arguments in favor police defunding/abolition, and been won over to them. And yet, 6 months ago I certainly wasn't "far right." 

[JGPR2]

Miss the days when we just talked about people's talent and not what they like on Twitter or any other social media platform.

[Sutton Ross]

^ 100%. You can like and appreciate someone's professional life and not judge their private one. Sad. 

[Esther2]

Except that if it's on Twitter (or whatever other social media), it's not private.  And if it's said on Twitter, it's out there to consume and judge.  Otherwise, why put it out there? If you want to keep your private life private, and only be talked about in terms of your professional talents, than stay off of public social media. It's easy. 

[HogansHero]

TBH, unless it crosses a line, I am not interested, but if a public person chooses to post publicly about something, it is fair game. Were I to react, it would be no different than reacting to what someone writes here. 

[Sutton Ross]

Um, anything that is not apart of your professional life is your private one. That's what I meant. He gets to have opinions and can chose to have social media, it's just strange that because he isn't like most people on Broadway regarding his views, he gets a whole thread devoted to trashing him. He's not one of the bad guys on Broadway and the attempt to shed light on his views is pathetic. 

[teatime2]

I think that separation is impossible. The artist making the art inherently has those beliefs and the platform to spread them. If they have a platform and decide to have somewhat unprofessional conversations with castmates :

https://twitter.com/chadkimball1/status/1280917378289643521

then let the conversation roll. I'm tired of this devil's advocate game to a regime that oppresses communities that Broadway capitalizes off of.  

[Sutton Ross]

You think separation is impossible? Well the majority of people who come to see Broadway shows (where he's worked for a long time) will not take the time to look up people afterwards, and even less will care about their political views. Chad greets fans with love, appreciation and respect. He's also overcome a lot of adversity in his life and remains positive and loving. But, if you want to think he's some monster for saying "So, no debate should take place That’s super healthy and positive. How about think for yourself and get to the voting booth", go right ahead. 

You can have different view points and still respect people and their work, shockingly. 

[HogansHero]

Sorry Sutton, but you're wrong here. Those 6500 followers he has are not his personal friends. I will defend his right to say what he wants but I will also defend the right of anyone else to call him out. I know lots of people with public personas, and lots of them have two sets of social media accounts. 

[teatime2]

Sutton Ross said: "You think separation is impossible? Well the majority of people who come to see Broadway shows (where he's worked for a long time) will not take the time to look up people afterwards, and even less will care about their political views. Chad greets fans with love, appreciation and respect. He's also overcome a lot of adversity in his life and remains positive and loving. But, if you want to think he's some monster for saying "So, no debate should take place That’s super healthy and positive. How about think for yourself and get to the voting booth", go right ahead.

You can have different view points and still respect people and their work, shockingly."

I did not say he was a monster. He's very talented and I've had friends that have had great interactions with him. I'm tired of the "someone is this BUT he is this too". He is seemingly a trump supporter and that is a fact just as much as that he's often a good performer. I'd love to have a conversation with you about this, but you seem like you just want to state your opinion as fact and reprimand others for speaking theirs. 

[Sutton Ross]

The fact is a person can be many things. I don't care to debate with you regarding him, as I had a wonderful interaction with him before something incredibly traumatic happened to me years ago, so I will always defend him and truly appreciate his kindness on that day. 

I admit it's very, very hard for me to understand anyone voting red this November, but I would never judge someone solely on their political leanings, it's just not my style. 

Be well. 

 

[JBroadway]

JBroadway said: "While I strongly disagree with Kimball's stance on the police, I don't think it's accurate to call this a "far right" stance. Many liberal, left-wing people do not consider police defunding or abolition to be the best way to handle police violence. The ACAB/Abolitionist/Defunding movement has only recently gained popular traction, and is still relatively fringe compared to say, the movement for gay marriage. If you had asked me 6 months ago, I probably would have argued that police abolition was a bad idea too. It's really only in the past few months that I've really become aware of the information and arguments in favor police defunding/abolition, and been won over to them. And yet, 6 months ago I certainly wasn't "far right.""

 

Having just scrolled further down his Twitter, I now realize that he is, in fact, a Trump supporter. 

Kimball is allowed to be many things at once, including a good performer, a person who walks around the world treating others with kindness, AND a person who openly supports a racist, homophobic, anti-semitic, rapist. I can acknowledge the first 2 things, while also condemning him for the 3rd thing. One can choose to prioritize the 1st and 2nd things over the 3rd, but personally, I see the 3rd as a more true reflection of where his values lie than how he treats fans at the stage door. 

 

[Sutton Ross]

My interaction with him had nothing to do with the stage door. Not even close. And, how actors treat their fans and how positive interactions makes people so happy to have met them does matter. 

[BroadwayNYC2]

He is given this platform because of his job, this ain’t his personal life.

[Owen22]

Having been in love with him since that off Broadway Godspell years ago this is very very very very very disappointing. I don't know what to do with this information. I just can't....

[Owen22]

.... I just can't....

[Sutton Ross]

But....like....how much can you, like, CANNOT?

[JBroadway]

Sutton Ross said: "My interactionwith him had nothing to do with the stage door. Not even close. And, how actors treat their fans and how positive interactionsmakes peopleso happy to have met them does matter."


It matters yes. As I said in my post, it’s not that those other things don’t matter, it’s about what you prioritize. You’re welcome to prioritize whatever you want. 
 

I apologize for making the assumption about the stage door, but what I said is equally applicable to real life interactions. Kindness is important. But kindness and morality aren’t the same thing. 

[Sutton Ross]

They are not. He just seems like a Republican to me, it does not mean he is a Trump supporter. I just don't see a person who donates plasma for further Covid19 research, who raises money for Broadway Cares, who also raises money for masks for healthcare workers, who support and loves his wife, and who is loved and respected by the Broadway community as some kind of immoral person. 

[JBroadway]

I hear you. That’s one of the great struggles of life, especially right now: trying to understand how and why people who seem to be kind, can support such evil. People are capable of doing both good and bad things. You’re right to remind people of the good things he has done. But let’s not use that to erase the bad things.

For the record, this is the Tweet/thread I saw in which he expresses support for Trump:

 

https://twitter.com/chadkimball1/status/1269496393892315137