Everybody Hurts For Haiti...Really?!
Written by Tamsin Cook
Watching the official video for the Helping Haiti cover of R.E.M’s Everybody Hurts, I cannot avoid feeling some kind of contempt for the stars who appear on it, elegantly filmed in black and white interspersed with images of wounded and distressed Haitians in the aftermath of the 12th January earthquake.
Perhaps the stars really are sincere. But, like all celebrity charity singles or endeavours, is it not a little condescending? So, Cheryl, have you recently suffered at the hands of a devastating natural disaster, destroying your home and killing your immediate family? Mariah, have you had to struggle without sufficient aid, going for days at a time without food and water? Everybody hurts? Maybe not the best choice of song there Mr Cowell.Song choice is an issue which Beyonce might have wished to consider more carefully when she replaced “baby” with “Haiti” in lyrics for her “Hope for Haiti Now” performance of Halo. “Everywhere I’m looking now/I’m surrounded by your embrace/Haiti I can see your halo/You know you’re my saving grace”. For a start I am wondering if this even makes any sense, while I am quite sure that singing a song including the lyrics “Remember those walls I built/Well baby they’re tumbling down” is in bad taste in the tragic context.Don’t get me wrong, the money raised by the single and telethon is brilliant; however when it provides celebrities with added exposure it can come across as being a little vulgar, especially when they purport to being able to understand and even empathise with the victims. It is all very well to appear in a video and add vocals to a track which will probably boost sales and ensure admiration from one’s fan base. It is quite another to help out in any practical way. I would be interested to see Cheryl Cole and Miley Cyrus use their above average pay checks to book flights and help on the ground once the dust settles in a few months.Sandra Bullock’s attitude is one which I expect the singers have related to; when asked why she donated $1 million to the relief fund she responded, “Because I can”. However I believe it is an attitude which will not be fully satisfied. Giving their voices to a number one single to raise money is great, but what about the months and years in the future when the apathetic wealthier nations have forgotten? Will they be using their heightened media profiles to raise awareness of the Haitian’s struggle then?You can donate money to the relief effort here http://www.dec.org.uk/. Or of course you could head to iTunes to purchase the Helping Haiti Everybody Hurts single. Also keep your ears to the ground for news on volunteering, at the moment only specialists are advised to travel to Haiti however this is likely to change in months to come.
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