By Hipolito Navarrete, Managing Editor/Publisher
A peculiar thing happening now is that now some celebrities are telling other celebrities that they should shut the %*&#$ up about politics. That is inane and stupid, generally that might be where the rant might end, but let’s bring back some sanity to those crowd pleasing, click baiting rants.
Celebrities, such as Angelina Jolie, Tyler Swift, Miley Cyrus, Vin Diesel, Johnny Depp, Will Smith, Dwayne Johnson, etc. If these folks mention a project, an issue or an event, the public pays attention and it is that attention that can create relevance around an organization that is tied to that issue. There is also the fact that many of these celebrities, because they have more money, they have more time to get educated on issues that most folks are affected by, but don’t seem to want to educate themselves on. At this time, most folks are surprised by what just happened in this political year, but most are easily mislead by claims because they did not educated themselves on how to fact check or to manage their emotions when they responded to some of the crazy hyperboles that filled stories with lies. Just in case you don’t know, a hyperbole is defined as an exaggerated statement or claim not meant to be taken literally or seriously. In the citizenry of this United States of America it worked because there is an innate believe that no matter your situation in life, things could be better and easier. So those that were struggling, finally heard the clarion call that did not check itself for details, and could also identify those that were to blame for their situation, not themselves. For those that financially are doing well, but socially felt that they were being now targeted because of who they are, well they were waiting for that opportunity to be able to retain their identity and their conserve their wealth, so the pied piper played the exact song they each needed and wanted to follow.
It is critical to make sure that these folks are well versed on the issues that they speak about because their voices are given validation just by their ability to be relevant because of the work that they do. Many actors are given the opportunity to drive forward the need for issues to be in the spotlight, folks like Oscar Nominated Actor Edward James Olmos, focus on multiple issues but at the center of his work much has been on education and he has been very vocal about the need for public schools to be innovative and supported by the public they serve. There are others like the long list of United Nations Goodwill Ambassadors such as Harry Belafonte, Whoopi Goldberg, Jet Li and David Beckham. Their job is to not only travel to places where hope is needed, but to also bring press with them so that those folks that might be able to help, will feel compassion and actually help.
So as we consider the calls for the celebrities to be muted, that would be very tough for those folks that need the eyes of the world on them for just a minute, so that their world can be transformed for the better.