Marlee Matlin is speaking out after multiple reports emerged that allege Donald Trump had called her “retarded” during the filming of Celebrity Apprentice.
The reports followed an allegation that Trump had repeatedly hit on Matlin during the taping of the 11th season of the long-running reality show.
On Friday afternoon, the Oscar-winning actress tweeted her response.
“Recent media reports have circulated that Donald Trump allegedly referred to me as ‘retarded,’ ” she wrote. “The term is abhorrent and should never be used. The fact that we are talking about this during a very important moment in American history has upset me deeply.”
My response to recent media reports – Marlee. pic.twitter.com/Mkrbh47dUO
— Marlee Matlin (@MarleeMatlin) October 14, 2016
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“I am Deaf,” she continues. “There are millions of Deaf and hard of hearing people like me, in the United States and around the world who face discrimination and misunderstanding like this on a daily basis. It is unacceptable.”
“So what’s my response? It’s not about insults or taking each other down,” she concludes. “As a person who is Deaf, as a woman, as a mom, as a wife, as an actor, I have a voice. And I’m using that voice to make myself heard…and vote.”
The Trump campaign did not respond to the Daily Beast‘s inquiry about the story and did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
