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Queen Latifah’s New Film Mirrors Her Personal Struggles

By Stacey Cole
Published on: 02:56 PST, Apr 6, 2016

Queen Latifah has had her own share of traumas and tragedies, which included the death of a loved one, substance abuse, and sexual abuse. USA Today reported that Queen Latifah was shattered when she lost her older brother Lance in a motorcycle accident. What made the tragedy even worse from Queen Latifah’s perspective is that her brother lost his life while riding a motorcycle that she had given him.

According to USA Today, Queen Latifah was so depressed after Lance’s death that she almost lost all strength to pull herself together.

This incident was just another burden for her to deal with, as she was already struggling with being a victim of sexual abuse as a child. Queen Latifah has revealed that her babysitter had sexually assaulted her when she was a kid. Her life had become so miserable that she relied on alcohol to cope with the tragedies.

Queen Latifah had been attending church since childhood, but the tragic event had shaken her faith in God. Luckily, as her life went on, she experienced small positive experiences that encouraged her to be strong and to slowly regain control of her life. USA Today reports that Queen Latifah realized that she would have to depend on her faith in God to gain strength and to achieve victory over the darkness in her life. She drew on her enduring faith to embrace a determinedly upbeat outlook.

Queen Latifah spoke to USA Today about how people should act when they go through turbulent times.

“It’s not just about what happens. It’s about your response to it. So, the response is not to lie down and die, you know, to just take it. Response is to challenge it, to fight back. to fight through, to fight through it.”

Additionally, she has urged the victims of sexual abuse to open up and speak out, believing that breaking the silence is an important factor in healing from the psychological wounds caused due to the trauma associated with the abuse. Queen Latifah has created her own path in an industry that categorizes people and puts them in a box. She believes in exploring each of her gifts and talents to carve a niche for herself.

Queen Latifah defies all definitions of beauty, and she wears her own beauty with tremendous confidence by stating that beauty is not superficial and that it starts from within. More than just preaching wisdom, Queen Latifah practices what she preaches. Recently, Queen Latifah showed stunning kindness and grace when she apparently paid several staff members out of her own pockets when The Queen Latifah Show shut down production after two seasons.

And yet, Queen Latifah has always remained grounded and has stayed true to the feminist ideals that are so important to her. She has been associated with feminism from her earlier days when she was rapping about the issues faced by black women. She is also a role model to overweight women who don’t fit the skinny Hollywood stereotype.

Essence reported that Latifah teamed with Michelle Obama and participated in the South by Southwest festival in Texas to host an event, where she asked top female achievers to share the moment they decided to take charge and inspire girls and women around the world. During the event, women from all walks of life talked about their inspirations, motivations, and what empowers them to achieve their goals and create an impact in society.

Entertainment Tonight reports that Queen Latifah will be seen in the faith-based movie, Miracles From Heaven, based on a true story about a mother who becomes a fierce advocate for her daughter who is diagnosed with a rare, incurable disease.

The mother’s unfailing faith enables the family to receive an extraordinary medical miracle that leaves specialists baffled and a community inspired. Queen Latifah portrays a character who brings hope and inspiration to the suffering family. Just like the movie, Queen Latifah’s life has inspired and encouraged many people to fight through the challenges that their lives have presented.

[Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images for SXSW]

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