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‘I asked my manager if I would be safe’: Lea Salonga opens up about anxiety of being in Trump-led US

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<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2020/entertainment/11/09/leahh.jpg"/><figcaption>Broadway star Lea Salonga says she felt anxiety as a woman of color during her visits in the United States under the presidency of Donald Trump. Instagram: @msleasalonga/ FILE: Carlos Barria, Reuters</figcaption></figure></div>MANILA — Broadway star Lea Salonga can now sigh in relief after the victory of US President-elect Joe Biden, as she opened up Sunday about her past anxiety of frequenting the country under the leadership of current President Donald Trump.In a Facebook post, Salonga <a href="https://www.facebook.com/missleasalonga/posts/10158552437380482" target="_blank">recalled</a> feeling an “unfamiliar sense of dread and fear” when Trump won the presidency in 2016.“I’m a woman of color that spends plenty of time in the United States. My daughter is growing up to be a woman of color, an actual Asian-American. And the both of us could, in our own unique ways, feel that something wasn’t quite right with the force,” she said.Salonga has one daughter, Nicole, with her husband Robert Chien.“Before heading to the US to embark on my 2017 US tour, I asked my manager if I would be safe. I’ve never had to ask that question, ever,” Salonga wrote.Salonga, who was once based in the US and regularly stages concert tours there, recounted that it was “the first time I actually felt apprehension walking in the streets of one of the biggest melting pots in the world, New York City.”“I felt I had to constantly look over my shoulder to make sure I was far enough away from people so as not to get attacked.“Every time I went on stage during my US and Canadian tours, Nicole would always... always ask the question, ‘Are you going to be OK? No one’s going to hurt you while you’re on stage?’ I had to reassure her that I would be safe. She was doubly worried when on tour in 2019 I went out on stage with crutches, hobbling until I reached my spot, sat down, got settled, and sang.”In January 2019, Salonga figured in a ski accident that broke her leg, causing the postponement of some concert dates. When she resumed, she was still recovering, and had to rely on crutches to take her place on stage.Referring to her shared concern with Nicole at the time, Salonga said: “I never felt that before, that sort of anxiety. The act of singing was helpful in getting rid of that, thankfully, and thankfully I wasn’t ever traveling alone.”“No one should ever have to feel this kind of fear in a democracy. Please repeat that sentence as often as necessary.”With Biden set to become US president in January 2021, Salonga said she now feels “like I can go back to the USA” — once the pandemic is controlled — “and not have to feel like I’m being watched by nefarious forces wanting to do me harm.” “Today, I feel something familiar and far more welcome: HOPE.”<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Whatever happens, we’re with you, <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeBiden?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JoeBiden</a>! Such a privilege to meet you at the Tonys! (Photo on the left taken by <a href="https://twitter.com/victorlirio?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@victorlirio</a>) <a href="https://t.co/zZVzqrwgEN">pic.twitter.com/zZVzqrwgEN</a>— Lea Salonga (@MsLeaSalonga) <a href="https://twitter.com/MsLeaSalonga/status/1323716668233715712?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 3, 2020</a></blockquote><div><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charSet="utf-8" type="text/javascript"></script></div>

“Every time I went on stage during my US and Canadian tours, Nicole would always... always ask the question, ‘Are you going to be OK? No one’s going to hurt you while you’re on stage?’”

“Every time I went on stage during my US and Canadian tours, Nicole would always... always ask the question, ‘Are you going to be OK? No one’s going to hurt you while you’re on stage?’”