Alyssa Milano

Milano dabbled in political activism from a young age, but became more active in the early 2000s, particularly after volunteering for then-U.S. Senator John Kerry‘s (D-MA) 2004 presidential campaign. Milano has advocated for a wide variety of causes, including animal rights and feminism, and is known for promoting the #MeToo campaign against male sexual misbehavior. Milano has also remained active in Democratic circles, both using her public profile to promote favored causes and operating as “a political ninja working behind the scenes” in low-key roles. ¹

Activism

Animal Rights

Milano appeared in an advertisement for PETA dressed in an outfit made of vegetables with the caption, “let vegetables grow on you.” ² Milano was a vegetarian but became an advocate of the Atkins diet in 2015. ³

AIDS Awareness

As a young actress, Milano advocated for awareness and tolerance of AIDS by kissing AIDS victim Ryan White on the cheek during an appearance on the “Phil Donahue Show.” ⁴

Milano has served as a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF, for which she has traveled around the world to raise awareness of diseases. In 2004, Milano traveled to Angola to raise awareness of AIDS. ⁵

#MeToo

On October 15, 2017, Milano tweeted: “If you’ve been sexually harassed or assaulted write ‘me too’ as a reply to this tweet.” The Tweet garnered thousands of responses from women claiming to be victims of sexual assault, including Lady Gaga, Viola Davis, and Evan Rachel Wood. The use of “Me Too” was inspired by feminist activist Tarana Burke who used the phrase as early as 2006. Over the following months, the reaction to Milano’s Tweet became known as the #MeToo Movement, a social movement that raises awareness of sexual harassment against women. ⁶

Milano was later criticized for perceived hypocrisy after dismissing allegations of sexual assault against President Joe Biden (D). Milano told Buzzfeed News, “I think when we get into this place of believing women, regardless of giving men due process, it actually does more harm to the movement than good.” ^{7 8}

#MeToo activist and “Charmed” co-star Rose McGowan had a major falling out with Milano after her defense of President Biden. McGowan also claimed Milano was “being complicit with abusers” due to her association with United Talent Agency, which is connected to numerous accused abusers. ^{9 10}

In 2019, Milano publicly refused to attend the Women’s March after revelations that the Women’s March co-chairs, Linda Sarsour and Tamika Mallory, associated with and praised Nation of Islam (NOI) founder Louis Farrakhan, a known antisemite. Milano stated that she would attend the march if the leadership distanced themselves from Farrakhan or stepped down: “Any time that there is any bigotry or anti-Semitism in that respect, it needs to be called out and addressed,” she said, adding, “I’m disappointed in the leadership of the Women’s March that they haven’t done it adequately.” ¹¹

Gun Control

After the 2018 Parkland High School shooting, Milano became a member of NoRA, the No Rifle Association, a play on the National Rifle Association (NRA). NoRA, whose membership includes Tarana Burke, David Hogg, Minnie Driver, Amy Schumer, and Jimmy Kimmel, opposes the NRA’s political spending and influence. ¹²

Tesla

In 2022, Milano announced that she had traded in her Tesla for an electric Volkswagen car. In a Twitter post, Milano implied that Tesla products are “pushed in alignment with hate and white supremacy.” Some Twitter users pointed out that Volkswagen had produced equipment for Nazi Germany during World War II. ¹³

Abortion

In 2019, Milano announced a “sex strike” to protest against laws being debated in Georgia to limit abortion access. ¹⁴

In 2020, Milano acknowledged that she had two abortions in 1993. ¹⁵

Defund the Police

Milano has advocated for defunding the police and giving more funds to alternative forms of law enforcement. In September 2020, Milano received backlash from fans for perceived hypocrisy after she called the police on a man shooting squirrels with an air gun, prompting “a massive police response” including a helicopter and a K-9 unit. ⁷

Syrian Civil War

In 2013, Milano released a celebrity sex tape parody on “Funny or Die” to raise awareness of the Syrian Civil War. ¹⁶

Politics

Political Views

Alyssa Milano has expressed broadly left-of-center political views aligned with the Democratic Party, including support for anti-voter security laws, pro-abortion laws, pro-transgender laws, stricter environmental regulations, liberal immigration policies, and gun control. ¹⁷

Political Activism

Milano has canvassed for political candidates since 2004, when she volunteered for the presidential campaign of U.S. Senator John Kerry (D-MA). She has mentioned U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-TX), and U.S. Congressman Adam Schiff (D-CA) as her “closest political friends.” ^{1 18}

During the 2016 Democratic presidential primaries, Milano endorsed U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (D-VT). ¹⁹ After his defeat, Milano endorsed the campaign of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (D-NY). ²⁰

In 2017, Milano campaigned for U.S. Senator Doug Jones (D-AL) against controversial former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore (R) by driving voters to the polls. After U.S. Senator Jones’s victory, Milano said, “Roy Moore represented the history and heartache of the past, and Doug Jones represented the inspiration and hope for the future […] and it truly, to me, came down to being a part of and being on the right side of history.” ¹⁸

In 2018, Milano became a co-chair of Health Care Voter, a left-of-center health care advocacy organization created in 2017 to block the repeal of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (also known as “Obamacare”). ²¹

Milano was extremely active during the run-up to the 2020 election. She participated in an event with Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer (D), raised money for U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-IL), moderated an event with former U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-TX), attended events hosted by Red, Wine and Blue; Women for Biden; Joe Mamas; Emerge Texas; and Annie’s List, and did phone banking for Democrats in Ohio, Nevada, and Florida. ²²

In 2021, Milano was arrested at a protest organized by People For the American Way in support of the Freedom to Vote Act, the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, and the Washington D.C. Statehood Act. ²³

Political Aspirations

In 2017, Milano stated that she would consider running for office when her kids are older. ¹⁸

In 2021, Milano said she was “considering” running against U.S. Rep. Tom McClintock (R-CA) in 2024. ¹⁷

Funding

Since 2008, Milano has donated tens of thousands of dollars to Democratic candidates and political committees. In 2019, Milano made her largest FEC-reportable contribution of $10,000 to Fair Fight, a PAC that opposes alleged attempts to suppress racial and ethnic minority voters. ²⁴