#DontLookAway: 'Abused women are shamed, afraid to speak up'

Actress Amber Heard. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)

Actress Amber Heard. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)

Published Nov 27, 2018

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Amber Heard thinks women are met with "hostility and shame" when they speak up about abuse.

The 'Aquaman' actress - who accused ex-husband Johnny Depp of being violent towards her when they split in May 2016 - insists people constantly try to discredit or explain away allegations made against men.

She said: "When a woman comes forward, she will be met with skepticism, hostility, and shame. All a man has to do is point to an incentive. He will. Or society will."

But Amber is determined to speak out as much as she can to raise awareness to the causes she supports.

She said: "My job provides me with a platform. Silence is complacency."

The 32-year-old star still believes there is a long way to go when it comes to addressing gender inequality and the pay gap in Hollywood.

She told America's Glamour magazine: We get paid less as women, and we end up spending more time on set, because of hair and make-up demands...we're working in an inherently flawed system."

The 'London Fields' actress insists the way people react to her good looks is not her "responsibility" and she can express her sexuality however she wants.

She said: "I've done the best I could without the luxury of being picky.

"There's an implicit apology expected of me for my participation in feminine beauty, but I can't play into this false narrative that my sexuality is mutually exclusive from my power.

"My physical appearance, no matter how it affects others, is solely the responsibility of people around me. You know, male characters in movies included. It is their responsibility, not a woman's. 

"My sexuality, my femininity, in whatever way I want to express it, is mine and my own."

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