KOMPA! MAGAZINE

[tipoupouche]

Best of Miami Spice 2010
By Lee Klein

Wyclef Jean can save Haiti; Sean Penn is a loser
Luke goes to bat for the musician.

C. StilesWyclef Jean should become Haiti's president. He should win his appeal of that government's decision barring him from running for president. His heart and mind are in the right place; he is dedicated to helping his country. So far, he has used his star power to raise tens of millions of dollars for Haiti earthquake victims.

However, Wyclef has been helping the people of Haiti since long before the earthquake. He has represented his country throughout his entire career by feeding the hungry and needy and speaking out on the political corruption. He is not like other celebrities and actors who desert their countries when they get to the United States.

Wyclef can bring hope to the Haitian people and draw attention to the country's ills. He would be a tremendous diplomat. Yet at a time when Haiti could use a unifying force, the country's political leaders are determined to create more instability.

This is why I can't understand the motives of people, such as actor Sean Penn, who have the audacity to challenge Wyclef's candidacy. It bothers me when celebrities jump in front of the news cameras and become ambassadors to devastated countries in the immediate aftermath of a natural disaster. They ran to New Orleans for photo ops shortly after Hurricane Katrina. But where are they now when the city is still in bad shape and residents are still displaced?

In a column for the Huffington Post, Penn wrote that Haiti's problems "must be handled and led by a qualified president's deft hand." The Oscar winner has also claimed he hasn't seen or heard from Wyclef during the six months he has been assisting earthquake victims — as if that makes Penn the foremost authority on the country's relief efforts.

I suspect Penn hasn't done much research on Haiti's turbulent political history and the corruption that has plagued the top post. Take, for instance, the administration of the nation's first democratically elected president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide. Even he left office under a cloud. And long before he was elected president, Aristide was a priest. So why can't a Haitian-born hip-hop star be afforded the opportunity to run for the devastated nation's top elected post?

Here in the United States, if you were born in this country, you're eligible to run for president. The same standard should apply to Wyclef and the other candidates rejected by Haiti's election commission. Yes, Jean moved to the United States when he was a kid, but as an adult, he has proven himself a tireless champion of Haiti.
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There was never real sovereignty in Haiti - Haiti must gain its sovereignty for good.

[TiZepeng]

By saying these words, Mr. Klein only proves he knows the country even less than Sean Penn does. An before he criticizing Sean Penn for stating the obvious, maybe he should spend a couple of months trying to manage a refugee camp in Haiti; he might just have a different point of view afterwards.

Peach


TZ

[SIROMYEL]

This article is way too broad.

There is no substance.

Even though I tend to question Sean Penn, the writer has to come better than this.
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A man who has taken possession of his own mind may take possession of anything else to which he is justly entitled_ Carnegie

[LouisJeanBeauge]

And what magazine/newspaper published this again?
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"Mesye bliye chèz la, al nan sena a, oubyen al fè sinema" Beethova Obas.

[tipoupouche]

LouisJeanBeauge wrote:

And what magazine/newspaper published this again?

Miami News !!!
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There was never real sovereignty in Haiti - Haiti must gain its sovereignty for good.

[Rj production]

so now if you question wyclef motive to run for president you become a loser maybe is just me Mr. Klein look like the biggest loser for bashing sean penn cause of his opinion
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jou revolisyon konsyans sa yap resi we kisa nou ye

[konpaconvert]

"Sean Penn is a Loser"

I lost interest right there

I have no problem with a pro-Wyclef article, but you lose credabilty as a writer when you sound more like you want to pick a fight as opposed to discredit someone's allegations.