BAFTA 2023: Why Celebrities Wore Blue Ribbons On Red Carpet

Jamie Lee wore her pin alongside her Everything Everywhere All At Once co-stars, Jonathan Wang and Ke Huy Quan; choosing to wear it on her wedding ring.

The ribbon marks an incredibly important cause, after earthquakes hit Turkey and Syria, killing an estimated 44,000 and displacing thousands more. Around 8 million people have also been displaced since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

The United Nations refugee agency, the UNHCR, invited stars hitting the BAFTA red carpet to wear the ribbon as an “emblem of compassion and solidarity” for those who have been forced to flee their homes because of war, conflict, and persecution.

According to the UNHCR, there are more than 103 million forcibly displaced people around the world.

Cate Blanchett herself said: “What I love about film is the way it draws us into compelling human themes to uncover the connective tissue that binds us all.  Whenever I have met refugees – in places such as Lebanon, Jordan or Bangladesh, here in the UK, or back home in Australia – what has struck me has not been their “otherness” but how many things we share in common”.

Meanwhile, Yusra Mardini said of wearing the ribbon: “It’s really incredible to see so many artists wear a blue ribbon tonight in solidarity with refugees and displaced people around the world.  Especially right now after the recent earthquakes in Turkiye and my home country of Syria.  My people – and so many others – are hurting.  They need our support.  We all need peace,” and Gugu Mbatha-Raw added: “This ribbon is a symbol of our solidarity to all those who have been forced to flee their homes whoever they are and wherever they have come from.”

Scott Garfitt

Dominic Lipinski

Lifestyle

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