"I am involved in a freedom ride protesting the loss of the minority rights belonging to the few remaining earthbound stars. All we demanded was our right to twinkle"

Marilyn Monroe’s evocative words connect the struggle for personal autonomy, the yearning for recognition, and perhaps the existential crisis faced by celebrities and outsiders alike. The metaphor of a “freedom ride”, an allusion to the Civil Rights Movement where activists rode buses to challenge racial segregation, anchors her sentiment in a context of righteous rebellion and protest. By evoking this, she frames her struggle as not merely personal, but as a part of a larger fight against systems that oppress and marginalize.

Referring to herself and others as “earthbound stars” is a poignant turn of phrase. Stars are luminous, untouchable, and part of a celestial narrative, yet to be “earthbound” is to be trapped, weighed down by gravity, or perhaps by the expectations and constraints of society. Monroe suggests that those who shine brightly, who possess a unique kind of visibility and charisma, also bear the burden of being misunderstood or confined. Their brilliance, rather than being celebrated, becomes a liability, drawing both adulation and scrutiny, and ultimately exposing them to the risk of having their individuality suppressed.

The “minority rights belonging to the few remaining earthbound stars” highlights the loneliness and vulnerability experienced by people who stand out from the majority, whether by fame, difference, or defiance of social norms. It is a lament for the erosion of spaces where uniqueness is safe or cherished. These “rights” are not about privilege but about the fundamental human entitlement to self-expression, authenticity, and dignity.

“All we demanded was our right to twinkle.” This closing line is tender yet powerful. To “twinkle” is simply to shine in one’s own way, to be oneself without interference or suppression. Monroe’s words yearn for the freedom to exist joyfully and authentically, asserting that even the most visible or celebrated among us are, at heart, simply requesting the grace to be who they are.