When a United Nation’s panel released a report criticizing “celebrity ‘endorsement’ of drug-related lifestyles,” they seemed to be talking about Amy Winehouse, a singer in the British tabloids more for her partying than for her songs, although one of them was a screed against rehab.
Over the weekend, another U.N. official stepped up to the plate for a more specific whacking. From an Op-Ed by Antonio Maria Costa, the executive director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, in The Observer:
Amy Winehouse might adopt a defiant pose and slur her way through ‘Rehab’, but does she realise the message she sends to others who are vulnerable to addiction and who cannot afford expensive treatment? Are such stars who flaunt their drug use aware of the damage caused by the trafficking of cocaine from South America via Africa to Europe? One song, one picture, one quote that makes cocaine look cool can undo millions of pounds’ worth of anti-drug education and prevention.
Why is this behaviour socially acceptable? If Ms Winehouse advertised fur coats or blood diamonds, there would be a backlash, yet when she is the poster girl for drug abuse, nobody seems to care.
But the Winehouse camp was not taking this laying down, as these remarks via CNN showed:
Winehouse’s spokesman, Chris Goodman, called Costa a “ludicrous man.”
“Amy has never given a quote about drugs or flaunted it in any way,” Goodman told the newspaper. “She’s had some problems and is trying to get better. The U.N. should get its own house in order.”
The U.N. might argue that its recent push against celebrities was part of getting its house in order on drug control. Was it a wise move?
Tags: Amy Winehouse Camp Hits Back.amy winehouse, druggie, euro drunk, eurodrunk, eurotrash, Music, rehab, singer, soul singer, white trash
