Summary
- In a resurfaced interview, Matt Damon passionately defended teachers, emphasizing their love for teaching over job security worries.
- Fans praised Damon's honesty and intensity in response to the reporter's question about job "insecurity", gaining millions of views.
- Damon's powerful speech in support of teachers, influenced by his mother's profession, highlighted his deep appreciation for education.
We've seen this in the past. Matt Damon doesn't shy away from his true emotions. Years ago, the actor couldn't keep a straight face during his final moment with Robin Williams on Jimmy Kimmel Live. He's also very honest about his career, worrying that his older age will ruin his movies.
In the following, we're going to take a look at another moment that once again showed Damon's true emotions. Damon was asked about teachers and job security. It seemed like the actor wasn't seeing eye-to-eye with the reporter. We'll reveal how Damon reacted, and why he received so much praise from the fans.
In addition, we'll reveal his thoughts on teachers, and why they are so important to him.
Let's take a closer look.
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Matt Damon Took Exception To A Reporter Claiming He Was Working Hard For Job Security
Over a decade ago, Matt Damon took exception to a question asked by a reporter. The suggestion was that Damon and others including teachers are working hard for job security. Damon wasn't having it, and instantly turned down the question.
He responded, “You think job insecurity is what makes me work hard? I want to be an actor, it’s not an incentive, that’s the thing,” said Damon.
“It’s the problem with ed policy right now, this intrinsically paternalistic view of problems that are much more complex than that. It’s like saying a teacher is going to get lazy when they have tenure. A teacher wants to teach. I mean, why else would you take a sh***y salary and really long hours and do that job unless you really love to do it?”
Even the cameraman entered the mix. He said, “Aren’t 10 percent of teachers bad? Then percent of people in any profession should think of doing something else.”
“Well, ok then, maybe you’re a sh**y cameraman, I don’t know,” Damon responded, while he wasn't entirely sure as to how accurate the statement really was.
Matt Damon's mom Nancy Carlsson-Paige was an early childhood education professor at Lesley University.
The footage got millions of views.
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As expected, fans had a lot to say looking back at the moment. For the most part, Damon received lots of praise for his comments and stance on the matter.
Matt Damon Was Applauded For His Comments About Teachers To The Reporter
On both YouTube and Reddit, Matt Damon received strong support for his comments. On YouTube, fans blasted the reporter, while praising Damon's honesty and opinion on the matter.
Fans wrote, "You came with that information, and you're sticking with it" I love that bit. That is the problem with performative debate. People aren't willing to admit when they're wrong, they just dig their heels in and come hell or high water they will not back down."
Another fan writes, "She came to interview Matt Damon, Will Hunting showed up."
Matt Damon said at a rally in DC back in 2011 that teachers back in his day were empowered to teach him.
"I like how Matt Damon always speaks with purpose and intensity. You know when he's speaking to you, he's speaking to YOU."
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Over on Reddit, there was the same reaction as Damon got lots of love, while once again, the reporter and cameraman faced some heat.
"What amateur journalism. What type of cameraman just blurts s*** out," a fan wrote.
"I never knew Matt Damon to be so eloquent and poignant."
What fans might not know is the fact that Damon's mom is a teacher. Therefore, he takes the matter of the education system very seriously.
Matt Damon Gave A Powerful Speech On The Importance Of Teachers And School
Once again, over a decade ago in 2011, Matt Damon gave a powerful education speech at a rally in DC. Huff Post provided the transcript of the speech. He spoke about how he was raised by a teacher.
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"I was raised by a teacher. My mother is a professor of early childhood education. And from the time I went to kindergarten through my senior year in high school, I went to public schools. I wouldn't trade that education and experience for anything. I had incredible teachers."
He continues, "As I look at my life today, the things I value most about myself -- my imagination, my love of acting, my passion for writing, my love of learning, my curiosity -- all come from how I was parented and taught."
Damon concluded his speech by thanking the teachers for their contributions, even when times get very tough.
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He added, "I came here today to deliver an important message to you: As I get older, I appreciate more and more the teachers that I had growing up. And I'm not alone. There are millions of people just like me. So the next time you're feeling down, or exhausted, or unappreciated, or at the end of your rope; the next time you turn on the TV and see yourself called "overpaid;" the next time you encounter some simple-minded, punitive policy that's been driven into your life by some corporate reformer who has literally never taught anyone anything. ... Please know that there are millions of us behind you."
A great speech by Damon that really showed his appreciation for teachers.
