“I don’t think it’s a coincidence whose pain has been taken seriously. Whose pain we have showed historically and continued to show.”

Union, who is featured in the movie, says she sympathizes with those who opted not to see it in reaction to director Nate Parker’s 1999 rape case and his handling of the fallout.

In the run up to “The Birth of a Nation’s” premiere this Friday, director Nate Parker addressed his infamous 1999 rape trial in two separate television interviews, declaring his innocence and his desire to shift attention toward the film.

Union, an actress and rape survivor who stars in “The Birth of a Nation,” addressed her co-star Nate Parker’s 1999 case in a candid new op-ed.

Nate Parker’s directorial debut about Nat Turner’s slave rebellion arrives in theaters on October 7.

The hashtag arose after Union expertly addressed Dash’s criticism of Black History Month and BET. 

Fox Searchlight successfully bid $17.5 million for Nate Parker’s highly anticipated film about Nat Turner’s slave rebellion.