UKRAINE RUSSIA WAR: Since Russia attacked Ukraine in February, celebrities have shown time and again that they support the country.
Actress Mila Kunis, who was born there, and her husband, Ashton Kutcher, raised an impressive $35 million to help people fleeing the violence, giving them shelter and supplies. Maksim and Val Chmerkovskiy and their family organized the humanitarian fund Baranova 27, which has collected and sent more than 80 tons of needed items, such as clothing and shoes, as well as gas masks and chemical suits, to those affected. Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively publicly pledged to donate $1 million to the cause. And the list goes on.
On Friday, a slew of celebs — most of them music stars — sent their love by participating in Global Citizen’s Stand Up for Ukraine social media rally. Elton John, Rita Ora, Celine Dion, Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood, the Jonas Brothers and many, many others posted photos and videos explaining their stance, often with very personal stories.
Stevie Nicks, for instance, wrote, “At 73 years old I never thought I would see in my lifetime flashes of things my mother and father told me about WWII.” Meanwhile, John recalled performing a free AIDS awareness concert in Kyiv in 2007 and helping AIDS patients in Ukraine and the surrounding region ever since. All of them called on world leaders to pledge billions of dollars at a pledging summit scheduled for Saturday, April 9.
Global Citizen also asked non-celebs to share their own videos and photos, hashtagged #StandUpforUkraine, explaining why they’re supporting the country and encouraging others to “give big” at the summit.