Ariana DeBose Claps Back at Bigots Following Historic Blue Wave: "Please Grow Up"

This story originally appeared on Out.Ariana DeBose did the thing!Well, the talented queer actress has actually done quite a few incredible things throughout her career. The Out100 cover star has already made history for the LGBTQ+ community by winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in Steven Spielberg's West Side Story.As the first Afro-Latina, the first openly queer woman of color, and the first openly queer woman to win an acting Oscar, DeBose has inspired countless LGBTQ+ individuals to pursue their dreams. Now, she's expanding on her impressive portfolio by joining Audible in the new series Exoplanet.By focusing on important themes such as chosen family and community, the series follows crew members after they crash on a deadly exoplanet, but in completely different time periods separated by centuries."I always felt like I contained multitudes. I don’t enjoy being boxed in. Even though it may take a little bit here and there sometimes for people to see the possibilities of my talent, I knew I wouldn’t have gotten this far if I didn’t believe in my own possibilities. I just keep challenging myself and the right things keep showing up,” Dubose tells Out. See on Instagram DeBose has always pursued her projects with a deep sense of passion. She is well aware that her public platform inspires others to keep working toward making their dreams a reality, and she hopes to continue doing exactly that."If anyone out there has needed to see that in order to find confidence in themselves, great! It makes some of the challenges I’ve experienced worth it. It’s why queer talent continues to pursue the things we love and we’re passionate about. Any time I hear a story or get a DM, it does make all the difference. It keeps me going and generates more dreamers. I’m trying to create more room for us. We’re thriving, but we can thrive so much more. We haven't even scratched the surface."Sadly, it's easier said than done to reach high levels of succ