Violet Affleck reveals furious argument with her mother Jennifer Garner

Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner’s daughter Violet recalled having a tense argument with her famous mom in a candid essay for Yale.

The Ivy League college student, 19, wrote about clashing with the Alias star, 53, over climate change, after her family escaped to a hotel to avoid the smoke from the Los Angeles fires in January. 

Violet, who referred to herself as a ‘climate-literate member of Generation Z’, published the research paper in the school’s Global Health Review on May 18.

‘I spent the January fires in Los Angeles arguing with my mother in a hotel room,’ she began her essay, titled, ‘A Chronically Ill Earth: COVID Organizing as a Model Climate Response in Los Angeles.’

While her mom — who volunteered to help her devastated community amid the fires — was ‘shell-shocked’ and ‘astonished’ by the inferno, Violet said she was ‘surprised at her surprise.’

‘My question had not been whether the Palisades would burn but when,’ Violet — who made a public plea for ‘mask mandates’ last year — added.

While waiting out the fires in a luxury hotel, Violet — who frequently jets around between the East and West coast — also complained that the behavior of the ‘wealthiest citizens’ was a driving force behind the ‘climate crisis.’ 

Ben Affleck, 52, and Jennifer Garner’s, 53, daughter Violet, 19, recalled having an argument with her famous mom in a candid essay for Yale; Jennifer and Violet pictured May 18 in LA

‘She was shell-shocked, astonished at the scale of destruction in the neighborhood where she raised myself and my siblings,’ she wrote of Garner, who also shares Fin (formerly Seraphina), 16, and Samuel, 13, with ex-husband Ben, 52.

‘I was surprised at her surprise: as a lifelong Angelena and climate-literate member of generation Z, my question had not been whether the Palisades would burn but when.’

‘As I chatted with adults in the hotel where we’d gone to escape the smoke, though, I found my position to be an uncommon one: people spoke of how long rebuilding would take, how much it would cost, and how tragically odd the whole situation had been,’ Violet went on. 

‘The crisis was acute, a burst of bad luck. It had come from a combination of high winds and low rains.’ 

Violet then remembered her younger brother Samuel asking ‘what did global warming have to do with the speed of the wind?’

‘Hopefully,’ she wrote, ‘most of us understand the climate crisis better than my little brother.’

In her essay, the teenager reflected on broader generational differences and society’s approach to crises like COVID-19. 

Violet went on to describe the ‘climate crisis’ as ‘existential and accelerating.’

She said it was ‘driven by unsustainable consumption patterns concentrated among the wealthiest citizens of the wealthiest countries, all of which have already subjected most of this country and the world to deadly temperatures, fire-flood cycles, rising seas, and dying crops.’ 

Garner previously opened up about the devastating fires while volunteering to feed communities in the Pacific Palisades in January.

The actress was seen lending support to World Central Kitchen (WCK) which is a not-for-profit, non-governmental organization that provides food relief.

In an interview with MSNBC she emotionally revealed that she had ‘lost a friend’ during the catastrophic event.

Elsewhere in her conversation the actress stated, ‘I’ve lived in and around the Palisades for 25 years, so I just think all of us, we want to get our hands into working, somehow, to be helpful.’ 

Meanwhile Violet is no stranger to activism. In January it was reported that Violet was hoping the devastating wildfires in LA would encourage others to understand the importance of preventing a ban on face masks.

The Ivy League college student wrote about clashing with the Alias star over climate change during the Los Angeles fires in January; They are pictured in 2024

While her mom — who volunteered to help her devastated community amid the fires — was ‘shell-shocked’ and ‘astonished’ by the inferno, Violet said she was ‘surprised at her surprise’

‘I spent the January fires in Los Angeles arguing with my mother in a hotel room,’ Violet began her essay; Violet and Garner are pictured May 2024 in Los Angeles

Writing of her surprise at Garner’s reaction to the wildfires, Violet stated, ‘As a lifelong Angelena and climate-literate member of generation Z, my question had not been whether the Palisades would burn but when’; They are seen in 2022

Violet also recalled her younger brother Samuel, 13, asking how climate change was connected to the strong winds that fueled the wildfires. ‘Hopefully,’ she added, ‘most of us understand the climate crisis better than my little brother’; Samuel and Ben pictured in 2024

In January it was reported that Violet was hoping the devastating wildfires in LA would encourage others to understand the importance of preventing a ban on face masks; Seen with Affleck and former stepmom Jennifer Lopez in 2023

Last year Violet demanded the imposition of ‘mask mandates’ in medical facilities and called for an end to all ‘mask bans’ in a plea to the governing body for LA County

Violet was said to have been ‘pressuring’ her famous parents and siblings to protect themselves with face coverings amid the hazardous air quality caused by the terrifying blazes.

‘She is clearly not going to give up on advocating for mask mandates. It has become a part of who she is and what she stands for,’ an insider told DailyMail.com.

Last year she demanded the imposition of ‘mask mandates’ in medical facilities and called for an end to all ‘mask bans’ in a passionate plea to the governing body for Los Angeles County.

She cited her experience of contracting ‘a post-viral condition’ in 2019, and urged the LA County Board of Supervisors ‘to confront the long COVID crisis’ by strengthening pandemic-era protections in hospitals and government buildings.

‘I demand mask availability, air filtration and Far-UVC light in government facilitates, including jails and detention centers, and mask mandates in county medical faculties,’ Violet, who is often seen wearing a face mask, said.

‘You must expand the availability of high-quality free tests and treatment, and most importantly the county must oppose mask bans for any reason. They do not keep us safer.’

Violet’s controversial speech was met with both praise and criticisms, with some hailing her as ‘courageous’ and others ‘utterly deluded’.

It comes after Violet was recently spotted towering over her famous mom during a grocery run in Los Angeles on Sunday.

Garner, who stands tall at 5ft8in, appeared several inches shorter than her daughter as they ran errands together.

And Violet wasn’t wearing any particularly fancy heels – just a pair of chunky trainers.

The pair could have passed as sisters as they picked up a few goods from Whole Foods.

The Yale student opted not to wear her usual facemask as she strode through the parking lot, a single bag from the store in her hand.

Garner and Affleck also share Fin (formerly Seraphina), 15; The actress is seen with her three kids in 2018

The former pair married in 2005. They announced their separation in 2015 after nearly 10 years of marriage, and officially filed for divorce in 2017; seen in May 2014

In late 2023 Garner, appearing on Live with Kelly and Mark, called Violet ‘a self-starter’ who had been ‘totally in charge’ of mapping out her collegiate curriculum.

Garner added, ‘I’m proud of her no matter what.’

Garner and Affleck have remained on good terms after their 2018 divorce and earlier this year sparked reconciliation rumors after Ben pulled her in for an embrace.

They were married from 2005 to 2018. She is currently dating businessman John Miller, with whom she first became linked to following her divorce from Ben.

Last month Ben praised Jennifer and their co-parenting partnership during an interview with British GQ.

‘I’m really lucky that I have a really good co-parent and partner in Jennifer Garner, the kids’ mom, who’s wonderful and great and we work together well.’

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