Jada Pinkett Smith is horrified by increasing gun crime in the United States, declaring the country must look to third world countries to rediscover its values. The actress/singer and her actor/rapper husband Will Smith have traveled to Africa on several occasions for charity work and have been humbled by citizens’ appreciation of the basic things in life – like education.
The Smiths will fund and appear at Charles ’Charlie Mack’ Alston’s annual Party 4 Peace in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania this weekend, which aims to raise awareness of street crime.
Pinkett Smith says, “It’s pretty bad everywhere. I think we’re in a worse situation now than I can think of ever. Just the amount of injustice that we’re doing to one another. It’s such a complicated issue. It’s an epidemic. If you look at our homes, it’s clear why. We need a new reality. The idea that we’re supposed to sit back and wait for somebody to do something for us, that’s not going to happen.
“I’ve gone to Africa where kids go to school and share one textbook, (I’ve met) kids that are walking three miles to school, three miles home because education is valued. What do we value? Nothing. I always get interested in (Alston’s) community endeavors. This is a passion that he and I have always shared as far as trying to find ways to solve the issue of violence in our communities.”
Europeans go naked at the beaches in front of children, but Americans don’t. Prostitution and recreation drugs are legal in some other countries, but not in America. In order to judge American values you need to know all of America’s culture, then compare it directly to another culture. When generalizing a comparison, and without having a good understanding of what each culture has as far as standards, people like Jada look like they haven’t bothered to research what they are talking about. If guns bother Jada, she only needs to look at American history to see why the civilian population is armed to the teeth. It was necessary in early American history, not only for hunting for food, but guns were needed because civilians became guerilla soldiers to help claim and defend an independent United States, which we celebrate each year on July 4th. In addition, any country contemplating an invasion of the U.S. would think twice since the civilians are so well armed. For these reasons and more, there is a second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to preserve every citizen’s right to bear arms. Jada should respect her own culture in America first rather than disrespect it, and if she really hates it, then of course she has the money to live somewhere else where she feels more comfortable. Jada does work in Hollywood, which is loved and hated by most in the world for it’s lack of values. Is she better than the rest of Hollywood, and better than the rest of us? |