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12th Mar 2024

Here’s why people were wearing red pins at the Oscars

Charlie Herbert

Here's why people were wearing red pins at the Oscars

It was the biggest night in the film calendar on Sunday as the 96th Academy Awards took place in Hollywood.

The headline moments included Oppenheimer sweeping up, Cillian Murphy and Emma Stone claiming the best actor crowns, Christopher Nolan and Robert Downey Jr, ending their Oscars ducks, Ryan Gosling stealing the show and John Cena baring all.

But another thing that got people talking was the red pins that a number of A-listers wore to the Oscars.

Singer Billie Eilish, her brother Finneas O’Connell, and Poor Things stars Mark Ruffalo and Ramy Youssef were just a few of the celebs who donned the red pins with a hand symbol on.

The pins were a show of support of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, and part of a campaign launched by Artists4Ceasefire.

Artists4Ceasefire is a group of people in entertainment who signed an open letter to Joe Biden calling for the US to demand a ceasefire in the Gaza conflict.

Along with Eilish, O’Connell, Ruffalo and Youssef, the likes of Joaquin Phoenix, Cate Blanchett, Jon Stewart, Kristen Stewart, Jenna Ortega and Andrew Garfield also signed the letter.

The conflict between Israel and Hamas has been ongoing since October 7, when Hamas gunmen launched an attack into Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking 253 others hostage.

Since then, more than 31,000 Palestinian have been killed in the Israeli military campaign which has followed.

More than 130 hostages are still believed to be held by Hamas.

A huge humanitarian crisis has developed in Gaza since the start of the conflict, with the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres saying hostilities have “created appalling human suffering, physical destruction and collective trauma.”

Meanwhile, Israel has been ordered to prevent genocide in Gaza by the International Court of Justice at The Hague.

Speaking about the Artists4Ceasefire cause, Youssef told the Hollywood Reporter: “We’re all calling for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

“We’re calling for the safety of everyone involved. We really want lasting justice and peace for the Palestinian people.

He continued: “We really just want to say, ‘let’s just stop killing children.’ There’s so much there to process and it feels like the easiest way to have the conversations that people want to have is when there isn’t an active bombing campaign happening.”

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