Cher offers to take Ukrainian refugees into her home – and pleads with others to ‘step up’
Cher attends The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures Opening Gala on 25 September 2021 in Los Angeles, California. (Matt Winkelmeyer/WireImage)
Pop legend Cher has offered to welcome Ukrainian refugees into her home and called on others to “step up to the plate” to help those fleeing war.
More than three million refugees have fled Ukraine following Russian president Vladmir Putin launching an invasion of the country in February, according to data from the UK Refugee Agency.
The majority of refugees have gone to neighbouring countries including Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Moldova – with over 1.8 million going to Poland alone.
The “Believe” singer took to Twitter on Friday (18 March) to announce she wanted to take in families forced to leave Ukraine, adding they would be “safe” and “cared for”.
Afterward, she called on those in her “position” to “step up to the plate” to help those displaced by the invasion.
“MANY PEOPLE IN MY POSITION NEED TO STEP UP TO THE PLATE.IF I WAS ALONE OR WITH MY CHILDREN, & WE WERE TRAUMATIZED, I WOULD HOPE SOMEONE LIKE ME TO TAKE CARE OF US,” Cher wrote.
https://twitter.com/cher/status/1504654751702548482
Cher’s desire to help those in need has been welcomed by many people on Twitter including Kyiv Pride, one of Ukraine’s biggest LGBT+ rights groups. Kyiv Pride thanked the Mama Mia star for her statement on Twitter and described her as their “queen mother”.
Cher isn’t the only star using their celebrity status to raise awareness and help those impacted by the invasion.
Benedict Cumberbatch said he hopes to take part in a UK government scheme to offer Ukrainian refugees a safe place to live.
The Power of the Dog star was seen wearing a Ukrainian flag badge on the red carpet before the BAFTAS earlier this week when he expressed his interest in the “homes for Ukraine” scheme.
Cumberbatch told Sky News that it was a “really shocking time to be a European” and called on people to do “more than wear a badge”.
“We need to donate, we need to pressure our politicians to continue to create some kind of a haven here for people who are suffering,” Cumberbatch said.
“Everyone needs to do as much as they can … there’s been a record number of people volunteering to take people into their homes, I hope to be part of that myself.”
Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher have raised over $34 million to help Ukrainian refugees displaced by the war with the help of more than 68,000 people who have donated to their GoFundMe campaign.
Kunis, who was born in Ukraine, and Kutcher said they were “overwhelmed with gratitude for the support” that the campaign has received. They hoped the relief fund will “provide a softer landing” for refugees as they “forge ahead into their future of uncertainty”.
