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Ellen DeGeneres Slams Trump’s Travel Ban Using ‘Finding Dory’ [Video]

By Tito Ojo-Medubi
Published on: 21:32 PST, Jan 30, 2017

Ellen DeGeneres gives her take on Donald Trump’s refugee ban by referencing Finding Dory. The animated comedy screened at the White House on Sunday. The talk show host provided the voice over for Dory in the first installment, Finding Nemo and returned for Finding Dory in 2016. The sequel which has grossed more than a billion dollars worldwide stars DeGeneres as the absent-minded Australian fish on a quest to find her parents who are in the U.S.

According to Variety, the 59-year-old on her show airing Tuesday, commented on President Trump’s executive order banning the entry of citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries into America by drawing parallels with the Pixar animated comedy. The daytime host had insisted that she was not going to get political on the show, but instead talk about the animated comedy screened at the White House family theater.

“I don’t get political so I’m not going to talk about the travel ban. I’m just going to talk about the very nonpolitical, family friendly, People’s Choice award-winning Finding Dory.”

The comedian who first broke out with popular sitcom Ellen in 1994, joked about not having knowing the religious leanings of Dory’s parents, but pointed out that her father “sounds a little Jewish.” In Finding Dory, the forgetful fish in a childhood flash back recalls she has a family and arrives America only to find a barricade keeping her from locating her parents.

Here, DeGeneres made the not-too subtle connection of the 1,300 mile long wall that would purportedly cost $10 billion dollars to build. The 59-year-old pointed out that the wall in the movie did not stop Dory from getting in, insinuating that President Trump would require a different strategy if he wanted to crack down on illegal immigration.

“Dory arrives in America with her friends Marlin and Nemo. She ends up at the Marine Life Institute behind a large wall. They all have to get over the wall and you won’t believe it, but that wall has almost no effect in keeping them out.”

Ellen DeGeneres, who has been anchoring her show since 2003, made known that animals rallied around Dory and were willing to help find her parents. She added that they had nothing in common with the Australian fish and owed her nothing, but that when someone is in dire need, it is only normal to always lend a helping hand.

“Animals that don’t need her. Animals that don’t have anything in common with her. They help her, even though they’re completely different colors. Because that’s what you do when see someone in need—you help them.”

Even though the author of Seriously…I’m Kidding did not resort to the buzzwords dominating the political landscape, her criticism of the travel ban was loud and clear. DeGeneres in an understated manner had pointed out that Dory was not held back by the wall and had remained undaunted in the face of prejudice and discrimination. Even though the actress delicately used her show to voice her thoughts on the Trump ban, she has been more outspoken on other matters.

Days after a video showing gospel singer Kim Burrell preaching against gays at the Love & Liberty Fellowship Church in Houston emerged, Ellen DeGeneres dropped her from performing on her show. The 59-year-old had bluntly tweeted, “for those asking, Kim Burrell will not be appearing on my show.”

The 44-year-old singer was billed to duet on the song “I See Victory” with Pharrell Williams from the movie Hidden Figures. Burrell in her sermon had preached against “the perverted homosexual spirit,” querying why a man would want another man’s p***s in his face.

“You as a man you open your mouth and take a man’s p***s, you are perverted. You are a woman and will shake your face in another woman’s breast, you are perverted.”

The 44-year-old singer, after receiving a backlash from Pharrell Williams and Janell Monáe who worked with her on the song, accused an “enemy” of manipulating her sermon and stoking the embers of controversy.

A source speaking to the Hollywood Reporter confirmed that President Trump had indeed spent Sunday afternoon at the White House with family and friends watching Finding Dory. Hollywood has always made all its movies as far back as the 1900s available to the White House. The source said that the comedy Why Him, starring Bryan Cranston and James Franco, was also picked.

The timing of Trump’s Sunday movie screening drew plenty of ire considering the outrage and protests that had engulfed the U.S. and other parts of the world after the travel ban of citizens from Libya, Iran, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan, Iraq and Syria. Citizens traveling from these countries are barred from entering the United States for the next 90 days. In addition, refugees have been halted from entering the country for 120 days, whereas Syrian refugees are prohibited from entering the country until further notice.

[Featured Image by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP Images]

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