First published on 23.04.2011.
It is hard to ignore Charlie Sheen and his ‘bad boy’ tour even if his basic image is far removed from celebrity activism.
Charlie Sheen during an interview with the ABC News where he said that he wanted to visit Haiti. (Image: Reauters)
One theme that jumps out is the contrast in types of engagement even among the same family. How could such an authentic and sustained celebrity activist such as Martin Sheen pass on so few of those characteristics to his son, and does this divergence signal a generational split that goes beyond one well-known case?
Just as a reminder to those who do not follow this side of celebrity life so closely, Martin Sheen has a long history of support for the disadvantaged across the span from US Latino farm workers to under-paid hotel staff. He also has lent support for a myriad environmental causes and was a firm opponent to the Iraqi war.
Charlie Sheen to his credit has supported various AIDS campaigns but is best known for his conspiracy-oriented views of 9/11, even going so far as to suggest that the Bush administration may have been responsible for the attacks.
So some fathers have the unexpected in the way of children!
The other theme, however, is whether celebrity activist engagements confirm or alter our images of them developed through the entertainment media. If Charlie Sheen is a consistent erratic, do we expect multi-location from other celebrities in which typecasts are eroded. Just to give one illustration do we expect Madonna’s efforts through herfoundation to build schools in Malawi to end in disaster, or did we hope for a more positive outcome? Is it a good idea to use Ginger Spice as a UN goodwill ambassador?
Although a number of celebrities are disasters waiting to happen in terms of activism, others surprise us. Bob Geldof has come a long way since his bad boy days. Sean Penn, best known for meeting Saddam Hussein in December 2002, has become deeply engaged and apparently effective in the Haiti relief efforts.
Is there hope for Charlie Sheen? Most probably not! But nothing in celebrity activism is clear-cut. Sean Penn invited Charlie Sheen to visit Haiti in March 2011, and Charlie responded by telling Access Hollywood: “I’m excited as hell because, you know, if I can bring the attention of the world down there, then clearly this tsunami keeps cresting.” So who knows!
