BBC Sherlock Fan Forum - Serving Sherlockians since February 2012 / Benedict for Liberty campaign to save Human Rights Act

**Posted by SusiGo** May 27, 2015 7:55 am

Benedict and other actresses and actors have joined a campaign for saving the HRA from being replace by a British Bill of Rights. Find his video contribution here:

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/benedict-cumberbatch-one-raft-stars-5768602

Last edited by SusiGo (May 27, 2015 7:57 am)

**Posted by ukaunz** May 27, 2015 8:07 am

I love Benedict's support of and commitment to causes like this.

I find it a bit strange that the people who created the video didn't make it clearer that it was a dramatised story though... for half a second I was thinking "What? Benedict doesn't have a brother!"

**Posted by tonnaree** May 27, 2015 10:28 am

He's not just a good actor, he's a good person. Which makes him that much easier to love.

**Posted by Ah-chie** May 27, 2015 11:50 am

tonnaree wrote:
He's not just a good actor, he's a good person. Which makes him that much easier to love.

Well said, tonnaree.

He seems just as passionate about his private life values (speaking out about social justice issues; fiercely vigilant about his beloved family's privacy - Sophie, his soon-to-be child; rock-solid loyalty to his friends, ie. James Rhodes; his long-term dedication to many worthwhile charities, etc.) as he is about his acting (obvious that is something he is totally committed to).

This is a man who has both his professional and private life centred around some very solid core beliefs and I like that very much. He is a remarkable actor and a remarkable human being, IMO.

Very easy to admire and respect him from many perspectives.

-Val

**Posted by ukaunz** May 27, 2015 12:48 pm

I found this on tumblr:

Cumberbatch tells the story of Janet Alder’s 13 year fight for justice after her brother Christopher died in police custody.“Our Human Rights Act belongs to all of us,” he says. “It’s not for politicians to pick and choose when they apply or who deserves protection. Repealing it will mean less protection against state abuse or neglect, and weaken the rights of every single one of us – and the vulnerable most of all.”

And very well said Val

**Posted by Ah-chie** May 28, 2015 12:14 am

Thanks Ukaunz for the kind reply.

As for the BC quote on the Human Rights Act, I saw this the other day and it prompted me to re-read a late November 2014 article from the Big Issue site that went into a bit on his politics and social activities...

"Cumberbatch himself is a beguiling mixture of emotional extremes. He might be tired today but his shoulders never slump as he swings from political passion (he works extensively with various charities and pressure groups: Stonewall, Liberty, The Prince’s Trust and Stop the War have all benefitted from his zeal) to dreamy romance, vaulting ambition to meditation-aided mindfulness."

That small paragrph didn't have space to mention of course, all the work and dedication he has put forth to literacy agencies (through Letters Live events), protests he has attended to draw focus to cuts in funding the arts, his being an active supporter and patron of the Motor Neurone Disease Association, work he has done as a patron of Odd Arts foundation, all the drawings and signed pieces he has donated to a wide variety of charities for medical causes and the disadvantaged/vulnerable in society - and even this is just a sampling of what he has done... there are many, many more examples of his generosity of spirit.

And I might add these are only the ones that get noticed in the press - I am not a gambling person, but I would feel very safe betting that he probably has done as many in private that never get noticed in the media. Everything I have read about him indicates that he has a genuinely generous, socially sensitive personality that isn't just confined public moments.

-Val