Angelina Jolie has given a rare interview about her home life with her children – while opening up about educating herself during self-isolation and her thoughts on ending racism in the US.
The 45-year-old Oscar-winning actress, who is also a Special Envoy of the High Commissioner for Refugees, spoke with Harper’s Bazaar UK from her Los Feliz, California home, while sharing two candid photos of herself during lockdown.
The ex-wife of Brad Pitt said she has been ‘putting all her energy into’ her six children during this time at home, adding: ‘…Like most parents, I focus on staying calm so my children don’t feel anxiety from me on top of all they are worrying about.’
Hitting all the hot topics: Angelina Jolie gave a rare interview where she talked about her children, how she is educating herself during self-isolation and the current movement to end racism in the United States
The Maleficent star lives in a mansion in Los Feliz, just a five minute drive from Pitt’s compound nearby and they have reportedly been getting along as they share custody.
Together they have raised Maddox, 18, Pax, 16, Zahara, 15, Shiloh, 14, and twins Knox and Vivienne, 11. The couple met in 2004 and were wed from 2014 until 2016.
‘Like most parents, I focus on staying calm so my children don’t feel anxiety from me on top of all they are worrying about,’ she said in the interview.
‘I put all my energy into them.’
She also shared an update on the family pets. ‘During the lockdown, Vivienne’s bunny passed away during a surgery, and we adopted two sweet little ones who are disabled. They need to be in pairs. They are so gentle and it has helped to focus on their care with her at this time. And on the dogs, and snake and lizard…’
A rare look: The 45-year-old Oscar-winning actress, who is also a Special Envoy of the High Commissioner for Refugees, chatted with Harper’s Bazaar UK from her Los Feliz, California home as she was seen in two new images
Jolie, who has donated $200,000 to the NAACP legal defense fund after the death of George Floyd, is also concerned about racism.
‘Having six children, I am reminded daily of what is most important,’ said the Mr And Mrs Smith star.
‘But after almost two decades of international work, this pandemic and this moment in America has made me rethink the needs and suffering within my own country.’
Angelina added there are more than 70 million people who have had to ‘flee their homes worldwide because of war and persecution – and there is racism and discrimination in America’.
‘A system that protects me but might not protect my daughter – or any other man, woman or child in our country based on skin color – is intolerable.
Being a mother is her top priority: Together they have raised Maddox, 18, Pax, 16, Zahara, 15, Shiloh, 14, and twins Knox and Vivienne, 11. Seen in October 2019
‘We need to progress beyond sympathy and good intentions to laws and policies that actually address structural racism and impunity.’
The crises have also caused people to rise up which Jolie is impressed by.
‘It feels like the world is waking up, and people are forcing a deeper reckoning within their societies,’ said the former model.
‘It is time to make changes in our laws and our institutions – listening to those who have been most affected and whose voices have been excluded.’
As far as the lockdown, Jolie is not the type of celebrity to complain that she is bored. Rather she looks outside her home and what is happening around the world.
‘I’m deeply worried about the impact of the pandemic and the global economic crisis on refugees,’ said the humanitarian.
Her first love: ‘Like most parents, I focus on staying calm so my children don’t feel anxiety from me on top of all they are worrying about,’ she said in the interview. ‘I put all my energy into them.’ Seen in 2017
‘They are people who have been driven from their homes and countries by bombs, rape and violent persecution in all its forms, long before this virus. They live with xenophobia and racism and prejudice every single day and are some of the most vulnerable people in the world when it comes to the economic consequences of the pandemic.’
And she worries about the abuses within the home.
‘The other horror is domestic violence. The reality before lockdown was that the most dangerous place for a woman to be was in her home. During lockdown, the abuse and level of violence has risen,’ stated the star
A good dad: Brad with Pax, Shiloh and Maddox in Hollywood in 2014; Pitt’s mother is on the right
‘Above all my concern is for the children. The number of children we know are being abused at this very moment keeps me up at night. There is a global health crisis for children from abuse, neglect and the effects of that trauma. And not nearly enough done to protect them.
‘During lockdown, the abuse and level of violence has risen.’
As far as what she has been reading these days, the list includes Time magazine, The New York Times, the BBC World Service and BLM activists online.
‘Most recently, I’ve watched the documentary I Am Not Your Negro about James Baldwin and the civil-rights movement in America,’ said the Tomb Raider star. ‘Before bed, I’ve been reading Unreasonable Behaviour by Don McCullin and reflecting on how journalism has changed in the last half a century.’
Jolie also shared that she has been working on children’s book with Amnesty International. ‘The reason rights do not reach a child in a country or home is that adults are blocking them,’ said the Salt star. ‘So in many cases, the child cannot depend on the adults.’
The daughter of Jon Voight added, ‘We are working on a book to help children empower themselves. It’s about what to do when your rights are revoked or not granted at the outset. We want to help kids, who are so engaged now, to use their knowledge and fight for their rights and claim them.’
At work: Jolie, a special envoy for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, speaks at a press conference during her visit to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in Brussels in 2018
Angelina added ‘we still turn a blind eye to domestic violence’ because we ‘often don’t believe survivors, we don’t put the rights of children first or take their trauma seriously.’
And the star noted that ‘child-protection services are not adequately resourced and funded. They lack proper training. So do judges.’
Women are the biggest victims.
‘When girls are out of school it leaves many more vulnerable to child marriage, child labour, sexual abuse and other violations of their rights,’ added the star. ‘The pandemic looks set to have knock-on effects on girls in many countries. We know it but still there is inertia.
‘The UN is warning that the pandemic could result in two million more cases of female genital mutilation and 13 million more child marriages over the next decade. That is horrific.
‘There is no easy answer but sounding the alarm on this, urging governments to anticipate where girls are going to be most vulnerable and to act, is essential as a first step.’