- Share This Post
- submit
- 3
-
Sparkle (0)
As everyone knows, part of being a celebrity is the inevitable fact that you will face scrutiny from the public, some of whom feel that it is your duty to appease their own needs and beliefs of how they think people in the spotlight should act.
When Oprah Winfrey opened her school for girls in South Africa this week, reportedly shelling out 40 million for the expansive building equipped with a yoga studio, indoor and outdoor theatres, oversized rooms with 200 thread-count sheets on plush beds, South Africans, most importantly Nelson Mandela, praised her for keeping the promise she had made five years ago. Celebrities flew in on their own expense to celebrate the opening of a school that some critics have said is too lavish for South Africa (or maybe it’s too lavish for the occupants?) But some Americans are angry. “One should always take care of home first,†said one commenter.
While some critics have acknowledged that what she does with her money is her business- after all, she earned it and has given millions of dollars to various charities both in the U.S and in other countries primarily towards educational resources - some have questioned her motives. Why not donate money to American educational institutions, especially inner-city schools in New Orleans that were chronically under funded pre-Hurricane Katrina? Or what about in Chicago, where her show is taped? According to a quote from Oprah in Newsweek she feels that her generosity to American children is not appreciated:
"Say what you will about the American educational system—it does work," she says. "If you are a child in the United States, you can get an education." And she doesn't think that American students—who, unlike Africans, go to school free of charge—appreciate what they have. "I became so frustrated with visiting inner-city schools that I just stopped going. The sense that you need to learn just isn't there," she says. "If you ask the kids what they want or need, they will say an iPod or some sneakers. In South Africa, they don't ask for money or toys. They ask for uniforms so they can go to school."
Several people have gravitated towards that statement. Diversityinc.com has been flooded with responses to their article on the school, but some say that while she feels that her generosity might have been snubbed by inner-city youth, there is the undeniable fact that she is helping in areas where others have not. On the other hand, are her riches getting to her head and she is blaming the poor for what North American society has bestowed on us: the overwhelming longing and consumption for material items? After all, do young women really need 200 thread-count sheets on their beds? I’m on the fence on this one. What do you think?
