Franchesca Ramsey Quotes

I feel a social responsibility. We need to open people's eyes. There is a lack of education in Ethiopia.

I wanted to better inform the world.

You can spread awareness through entertainment.

There is so much going on in world, even just on the Internet. I think TV should push to put some of the positive things going on in shows, and also to discuss more of the negative things so more people can relate.

YouTube is an amazing platform to talk about social issues because it gives people the ability to tell their own stories and reach audience around the world who may otherwise never be exposed to these people and conversations.

Propaganda has a negative connotation, which it partially deserves, but I think there is some propaganda that is very positive. I feel that if you can do something that gets people's attention, then maybe they'll go and find out more about the person.

In community work, you reach some people, but in writing, I can reach many more people, not only in exploring issues of domestic violence, but also by showing the importance of strong women in communities.

I don't think there is a single social issue I haven't spoken on.

Instant telecommunication allows better and updated information, lessons learnt and problems encountered to be exchanged and debated, it alerts us more quickly to problems and brings to many households around the world visions and information which hopefully spur us to action.

I could do a thousand documentaries on poverty and poor people that would be watched by a handful of the convinced, but I was never really going to have an influence on my times -- (as I might if I develop Sesame Street).

I mean I do believe there is a responsibility of the entertainment industry in general with everything that is happening with the world, with violence and with climate change and with the stereotypes with Latinos or any community.

Our players are not immune to the things that are going on in society.

I know it's very comfortable to sit at home and stay with your family, kids and friends and not worry about anything. But with the platform we have we should be the people that scream at the social issues and put them out there so as a society we can move forward.

I really appreciate when people use their fame and their voice for more than just self-promotion, starting a dialogue about a topic or an issue much bigger than themselves.

Growing up, I realized as an actor I had to figure out how to use my platform in order to give back as well and use that spotlight to shine, or at least to balance that light and to try to shine light onto the other issues that were happening in the world.

Many people of my generation grew up in developed countries thinking that the world was divided into two parts and that there was a wall round the developed world. They thought that poor people had no relevance to us. What happened on September 11 was that anybody who thought there was a wall now knows that there is no wall.

It's very easy, when we're reading those articles on the 20th page of 'The New York Times,' to distance ourselves and say, 'It's someone else.'

I've been an activist since my late teens. I take this very seriously and try to use the gift that's been given to me - access to the media - as positively as I can.

An experience that shaped me happened early in my TV career when I filmed in Mozambique, Angola and Bangladesh for 'Blue Peter' and Comic Relief. Places with extreme poverty. When you see that first-hand as a young person, you take it with you for life.

After the Winter Olympics in 2006, I realized I had a platform to speak about causes that were important to me - and people would listen.

I sing about social issues, not the boy-girl stuff.

I feel like my role is to be one of those voices who reaches the youth.

To see that I have this huge platform now, and so many people are listening to what I have to say, it really makes me want to orientate toward something that would really educate people, create awareness, do something more than just show them a cute outfit or what I'm having for lunch.

Public television is a very important thing for our human race, and it allows us the ability to discuss the elephants in the room and understand stories beyond the headlines.

Celebrities who lend their names to causes to raise lot of money for important issues should be admired and not marginalized and made fun of.