Family Guy Actress Shares Some Words For Sarah Palin

'The FOX comedy has always been known to push the boundaries of taste, but received serious concerns when a recent episode poked fun at Down Syndrome and Sarah Palin, whose son Trig has the disability.

Palin and her daughter Bristol have lashed out at creator Seth McFarlane, calling him and his staff "heartless jerks."

However, the actress who voiced the controversial character, Andrea Fay Friedman, actually has Down Syndrome and is responding to the Alaskan politician.'- CNN

In a message via online, Friedman writes...

"My name is Andrea Fay Friedman. I was born with Down syndrome. I played the role of Ellen on the "Extra Large Medium" episode of Family Guy that was broadcast on Valentine's day. Although they gave me red hair on the show, I am really a blonde. I also wore a red wig for my role in "Smudge" but I was a blonde in "Life Goes On". I guess former Governor Palin does not have a sense of humor. I thought the line "I am the daughter of the former governor of Alaska" was very funny. I think the word is "sarcasm".

In my family we think laughing is good. My parents raised me to have a sense of humor and to live a normal life. My mother did not carry me around under her arm like a loaf of French bread the way former Governor Palin carries her son Trig around looking for sympathy and votes."


The rest of the interview as followed:


Did they specifically tell you that the character you were going to play also had Down syndrome?

Yeah, they told me I was playing Ellen, who was Miss Bossy. I didn’t want to be bossy, but since they want me to be bossy, I just had to be as the character. I had to be bossy, as part of my process. That’s the only way to transform the real me to an animated person. So I had to do what an actor does. I just wing it and have fun with it.


When you get asked to play characters who have Down syndrome, does that make you at all uncomfortable?

No, I’m proud of it. I’m not embarrassed. But mostly, it doesn’t matter if you have Down syndrome. Really, it just matters to have a different challenge.


When did you find out about the reaction that the episode elicited from Sarah Palin and her family?

[laughs] That I did not even know about until my mom told me, “You’re on Channel 4!” And when I watched on Channel 4, on “Extra,” and I saw Sarah Palin with her son Trig. I’m like, “I’m not Trig. This is my life.” I was making fun of Sarah Palin, but not her son.


Do you agree with what she and her daughter Bristol were saying, that the character and the jokes were insulting to people with Down syndrome?

It’s not really an insult. I was doing my role, I’m an actor. I’m entitled to say something. It was really funny. I was laughing at it. I had a nice time doing voiceover. It was my first time doing a voiceover, and I had fun.

Well,

All were doing as a country is isolating not protecting those with Down Syndrome and/or other disabilities. Whats being accomplished here is making those feel even less capable in an already judged environment and nobody should feel that way.