Angelina Jolie flew to Lebanon this week to visit one of the biggest refugee camps for Syrian refugees. The camp is in Zahleh, in the Bekaa Valley. In the middle of her visit, Angelina and the refugees had to battle what seemed like a pretty bad storm. While the headline might be “Angelina Jolie looks incredibly beautiful without a stitch of makeup, having been half-drowned in a torrential downpour,” it’s also worth noting something more serious: millions of refugees have to deal with extreme elements all the time, with little more than a tent and maybe a blanket. Angelina didn’t pitch a fit about the rain, she just did her UNHCR business, spoke to refugees and UNHCR personnel, then made a speech engineered to raise more awareness not only the still-ongoing refugee crisis, but the ongoing lack of international and bureaucratic support for the millions of refugees. Here’s the first part of her speech:
“Good morning, I am pleased to be back in Lebanon today. I want to thank the Lebanese people for helping to save the lives of over 1 million Syrians. It is not easy for a country to take in the equivalent of a quarter of its own population in refugees. But for as much as it is a responsibility, I hope you are aware of the message it sends about the values and character and spirit of the Lebanese people. You are setting an example to the world of generosity, humanity, resilience and solidarity. On behalf of UNHCR, and on my own behalf, shukran, thank you.
We should never forget that for all the focus on the refugee situation in Europe at this time, the greatest pressure is still being felt in the Middle East and North Africa, as it has for each of the last five years.
There are 4.8 million Syrian refugees in this region, and 6.5 million people displaced inside Syria. On this day, the 5th anniversary of the Syria conflict, that is where I had hoped I would be: in Syria, helping UNHCR with returns, and watching families I have come to know be able to go home. It is tragic and shameful that we seem to be so far from that point.
Every Syrian refugee I have spoken to on this visit, without exception, talked of their desire to return home when the war is over and it is safe for them to do so – not with resignation, but with the light in their eyes of people dreaming of being reunited with the country that they love.
I have seen on this visit just how desperate the struggle to survive now is for these families. After five years of exile, any savings they had, have been exhausted. Many who started out living in apartments now cluster in abandoned shopping centers, or informal tented settlements, sinking deeper into debt.
The number of refugees in Lebanon living below the minimum threshold for survival– unable to afford the food and shelter they need to stay alive – has doubled in the last two years, in a country where 79 percent of all Syrian refugees are women and children.
You can read Angelina’s full speech here. She spoke at length about the crisis, the potential for political solutions, and the dire circumstances that millions of refugees face, and how nearly every one of those refugees just wants to go back home to Syria, if only they could return without fear of being killed by their government.
Here are some close-ups of Angelina at the refugee camp. This is seriously how she looks with little-to-no makeup. This is how she looks after being soaked in a torrential downpour. It’s just not fair, is it?
Photos courtesy of Getty.
Just saw pictures of her in Greece.. I truly appreciate how dedicated she is and how many years she has tried to voice her concerns. She has been talking about the Refugee crisis for over 15 years.. and things are getting worst.
that was a very well spoken speech.
It’s obvious that Angelina enjoys and believes in this work. But like most of her other threads, most comments will be how anorexic, plastic surgery, and media obsessed she is.
Yep especially the media thing is laughable. If she really cared that much she would hire a publicist and deny every single lie the media writes and she will have them sued.
My favorite ones are the comments about her veins. As a naturally veiny woman myself, I always look forward to being told how ugly it is.
Veiny women unite! I have very veiny arms and hands, and used to be very self-conscious. Angelina is so beautiful and her work with refugees is not only inspiring, but so needed and important. I’m glad her voice is being heard.
I know it really is ridiculous the criticisms she gets for those things — especially about being anorexic. The woman has always been thin lol! I admire her for all the work she has done for refugees and how she uses her wealth and platform for good. Class act all the way.
Come on….she is beyond thin. Let’s be honest about this – her arms look as thin as the arms of a 6 year old child. I don think she’s anorexic though- I think she’s busy and doesn’t eat, and I also think she probably has a lot on her plate emotionally with raising kids and work like this where you see fellow human beings in gut wrenching circumstances. That’s got to make you think twice about the excess we have in our lives. I just hope she remembers the first rule of those in the giving professions- you have to take care of yourself first.
She is everything.
I’m so glad my lost, confused, self-destructive teenage self latched onto this particular celebrity way back when. It was for more superficial reasons then, but I’m so proud to be a longtime fan of such a selfless spirit. It’s so, so important to pay attention to our global community and realize our own privilege and face uncomfortable facts about our leaders and our fellow human beings. It’s so important to make compassion cool and news-worthy, and she knew she could do it.
Anyway. Gushing over. There’s just nothing bad to say about this, no matter what you believe about her; this is one less story about a selfie, and one more story about people who desperately NEED media attention. Now to make a donation…
She is amazing. Hope she stays safe. She is doing good work. I hope the world leaders listen to her message and react positively. Refugees need help. They want to go home.
She is amazing. Hope she stays safe. She is doing good work. I hope the world leaders listen to her message and react positively. Refugees need help. They want to go home.
#TeamAngelina
Been Team Angelina for 15 years and she hasn’t yet given me a reason to regret being a fan..
Her speech was on point. And she is clearly wearing make-up albeit minimal and as natural as possible.
@Artemis, who wrote: “Her speech was on point. And she is clearly wearing make-up albeit minimal and as natural as possible.”
Yep, just like Kaiser wrote: “This is seriously how she looks with little-to-no makeup. This is how she looks after being soaked in a torrential downpour.”
Make-up or not she gives good face. She’s kind of working that Zoolander signature pout in the second close up. 🙂
so funny…I know the pic is like that because they caught her about to say something or she’s squinting because the rain is getting in her eyes (at least, that’s what it looks like) but the pic DOES seem like she’s trying to make an “I’m so sexy” JLo face.
BLUE STEEL!
but yes, we should all look so good when caught in a rain storm!
With her bone structure, can she look bad? Her pictures are best or good, really haven’t seen a “bad” one.
And yet she has not one refugee living in any one of her 5 homes. Only the masses of Europe have to actually make the sacrifices whilst the celebrities preach from the pulpit. Let her compete for jobs and resources like the poor and destitute of Greece do, and see how well she goes.
You sound so pathetic that I actually feel sorry for you
The story came from the Daily Fail, so she’s not even being original, as well as inaccurate. The article stated the Clooneys have 5 homes and the JPs have 3. It blasted the 2 couples for not opening their 8 homes to refugees, or doing anything personal for them.
@Serious has a point.,it’s easy for celebrities to preach, and not do anything personally, except give some time and money. People throughout Europe have opened their countries and homes to refugees so if she is going to lecture about it, at least walk the walk.
Let the flaming begin.
“and not do anything personally, except give some time and money.”
IMO, her giving as much of her time as she does IS “doing something personally”. it’s much more than just having your accountant cut a check. and she does that, too…by all accounts, 1/3 of her income goes to charity. to add, as someone pointed out below, she DID open her home to a few “refugees”, permanently, by adopting them.
I’m not going to “flame” you, but I do think you have some larger issue with this woman and are using a pretty weak reason to criticize her. If you truly have a problem with her not opening her home to refugees, I would expect to see you on EVERY celebrity thread complaining about how they’re not doing enough to help refugees.
FYI, I’m not even big fan of Jolie’s (acting-wise) but I do admire what she does in her humanitarian efforts and it amazes me how, even if one doesn’t like her acting or has issues with her love life, that they would criticize for THIS.
are you serious or just trolling?
You and people like you are the problem and not the solution for this crisis.
Nothing more to add to your pathetic comment..
What a seriously petty and pathetic comment. So unless someone takes refugees into their home, they are not genuine? Or is that your out, because she makes you feel insecure and guilty with all that she does?
Your country created its own issues, they took out loans that they couldn’t repay. Be angry at your government not these people. Your own government is corrupt beyond belief they’ve left you high and dry and you are trying to blame your issues on refugees? Give me a break!
I would argue that she has several refugees living with her…the kids were living in orphanages when she adopted them, displaced and without a home. Also, I don’t know that it’d be a good idea for her to adopt a child from the Middle East…I think the parents would have wanted their children to be raised in a Muslim household.
“I would argue that she has several refugees living with her…the kids were living in orphanages when she adopted them, displaced and without a home.”
very good point.
You make a very good point.
Don’t worry about people who don’t want to acknowledge it.
Although I admire AJ’s dedication, at the end of the day she is just a rich person that doesn’t have to live with the consequences what we are currently facing in Europe.
@bibi
I thought AJ and her family have a home in Europe.
By the way, what ARE people facing in Europe?
There’s this thing you may have heard of, it’s called ‘change.’ One day, if we’re fortunate enough to survive into the future as human beings without killing each other and destroying the planet….we’ll be vastly different than how we started.
Once the Americas were comprised of millions upon millions of Native Americans of Asiatic descent, now those people are very few in number or have been absorbed into other peoples. Do people of European descent cry for them? Cry for those lost cultures?
Once the Africans brought to the Americas, had ethnic affiliations, tribes, languages of their own that numbered in the several hundred….they were bred and raped, and killed and tortured – so that today, they have no connections but to a continent, and a majority are part European due to those same people that enslaved them. Do Europeans cry because Vanessa Williams has blue eyes and doesn’t look like Lupita N’Yongo anymore? I doubt it.
Why do white Europeans always get to freak out over their own supposedly vanishing culture when they’ve eagerly ‘colonialized,’ and diluted cultures all over the world for centuries??
So yea, one day the blue eyed blonde Swede or Netherland type image might dwindle…but are you really at a disadvantage with beautiful darker skinned brunette Alicia Vikander in exchange?
Thank goodness for change, because if not for homosapiens leaving Africa and mixing with the Neanderthals of Europe who had left much earlier, you would be extinct and not human.
K? Thanks, bye.
@Gina, as you noted, change is not always good. Ok? Get it? Bye.
@serious I like AJ I’m a fan. But I have made some remarks about AJ that other fans don’t agree with. But I have never doubted her humanitarian work or said anything negative about what she is trying to do for the less fortunate and people in war torn countries. I do believe she takes that serious and her heart is leading her in this. That being said I’m just wondering are you saying the same exact thing about George Clooney who also has a post on C/B today about him and Amal visiting a refugee camp. AJ has adopted kids from across the globe. George hasn’t adopted any. How many refugees do he have living in his home. Or does this only apply to Angie?
“Only the masses of Europe have to actually make the sacrifices whilst the celebrities preach from the pulpit.”
REALLY?! Because Lebanon and even Turkey (and I’m no fan of Turkey at all) have been taking Syrian refugees for YEARS way before they started migrating to Europe. If any country is making huge sacrifices, it’s Lebanon. Angelina said it best:
“It is not easy for a country to take in the equivalent of a quarter of its own population in refugees.”
Lebanon is a tiny country with its own problems, including sectarianism and people with strong opinions on what’s going on in Syria, with different allegiances and it is not a rich country or part of the EU, and it was among the first to open its borders to these refugees without any help and in spite who they side with in the Syrian conflict. Not to mention the number of Palestinian and Iraqi refugees inside Lebanon. Europe’s “sacrifices” pale in comparison.
Go Lebanon!!
I m Lebanese and proud, my country suffered for years in a huge problems like terrorism, wars, political and economic problems, no jobs….
And with all this problems we have accepted different refugees like arminian, Syrians, Palestinians, Iraqi, refugees from kurdstan, and others.
We live in one country with different people , different political views, different religions, languages,…
Thank you Angie for making efforts helping these people
Maybe we should trow you out of Europe and let us show us How you would manage to survive on your own….without compassion and help.
People like you make me vomit!
There are MILLIONS of refugees. AJ taking people into her “5 homes” would not solve that problem. She is working on the systemic issues that have resulted in this problem. Acts of individuals, while wonderful and generous, cannot possibly have the impact that acts of governments do. That is who she is trying to pressure here.
“She is working on the systemic issues that have resulted in this problem. ”
I think you’re overestimating her powers. AJ is not going to end the Syrian civil war and the destablisation of the Middle East. Obama has stopped trying – he’s too smart, smarter than Hillary, who will try if given any excuse, overspend on pointless “interventions” (read: wars) in the Middle East just like Bush Jr, and at the expense of a strong US presence in the South China Sea and the growing military ambitions of China, which is the REAL issue of the future.
The refugee crisis is a tragedy, and all these Europeans posting here are right when they say America did a lot to cause it. But AJ is dealing with the symptoms and there’s absolutely nothing she can do to address the roots of the problem.
@serious
How many refugees have you taken into your home?
I never thought of that. She has estates sitting empty around the world as she travels. She could house multiple families in each one and it would be a huge step up.
She does donate a lot of money to various causes. Apparently 1/3 of her income.
Exactly. Talk is cheap. Give some or most of your millions to the poor refugee’s and then tell me how selfless you are! Pffft. Clooney is in the same boat…and now he’s got a cheerleader wife making him look all the more charitable. I call bullshit.
Tell me Suzzane, have you donated any of your money to charity? Do you physically take time your your schedule to help the poor and needy? Have you adopted children who need a home? & If you’re going to make a tired point, at least have your facts straight Suzzane.
Aside from the fact that Angelina has adopted children from war and poverty stricken countries, she has also:
1) donated the $5 Million she made from her wedding pics (after they sold it to people and hello! magazine) which went to various charities that she supports.
2) The $14 million she received for her twins photos were ALL DONATED to charity.
3) The Jolie-Pitt foundation donated 1 million dollars to Doctors without Boundaries
4)According to their tax documents, the Jolie-Pitt foundation have donated about 8 million dollars to charity AND THAT’S JUST IN 2006.
5) Unlike other celebs, she actually takes the time to physically visit various refugee camps.
Charity isn’t a competition honey so next time, refrain from making uneducated comments about how other people aren’t doing enough.
@Suzanne, who wrote: “Exactly. Talk is cheap. Give some or most of your millions to the poor refugee’s and then tell me how selfless you are! Pffft.”
Angelina Jolie has been giving 1/3 of her salary to charity since she first realized the plight of other people around the world, around the same time she began her Humanitarian work … 2000 or 2001. She should give some of her millions to the poor? What is 1/3 of $15 million?
In fairness to the Jolie-Pitts they may not have Syrian refugees in their houses, but they did help and are still helping with the rebuilding of the lower ninth ward in New Orleans after Katrina. Now over a hundred new homes are built where it was all destroyed and those people were also homeless. Opening up your home although a nice idea really wouldn’t help that many, and most, especially the ones in Lebanon are hoping to go back to their home Syria just not the active war in their streets.
her deep-set eyes and wrinkles around them remind me of my mum.
<3
Why are you warming my icy heart? Stop it.
We call ’em the family eyes, here. My mum, grandmother, myself and both of my daughters have them (tho theirs are not wrinkled yet). They show everything, ‘specially when they don’t want to.
Agree that she’s a total badass. Maybe some of these new 2nd generation models and actors will be inspired by her philanthropy. Think we can expect that?
She is a great woman…. And I admire her so much
On a shallow note: I nevre have found her as much beautiful as she is in these pictures. She is stunning IRL , I prefer this version of her than the red carpet’s one! wow is she stunning!
I’ve said this before…she always looks so much more ENGAGED when she’s doing the humanitarian work. like, she walks the RC and does her job as an actress promoting her movies, but she always looks much more into the humanitarian work she does.
She should put dozens of those male immigrants in her villa and see how wll they treat her. German and Swedish female helpers, nurses, doctors, policewoman will give her a glowing review of the “well behaved” men.
Dear Americans you are responsible for the shit in the Middle East and it’s your government that is pushing millions of muslim men onto Europe, it’s not your place to tell Europeans how many immigrants they should take. Those people are illegaly storming the borders, attacking the police and demanding social care that is paid with taxes. All the while criminal acts by the immigrants are not punished. If those numbers of immigrants were trying to flood your borders in the same violent manner you would have sent your army against them.
Oh boy! Sooo much wrong here. I will say you are right that Americans should be doing way more to fix the mess they helped create with all the foreign policy shenanigans of the last 70 years in that region.
yes, Americans should do more but (@gaia) I will say this: Muslim problems in France existed long before the US invaded Iraq. That is a problem of assimilation for French society to unpack. And problems in Britain are not least the result of baffling immigration policies or a bloated welfare state. So please don’t act like no one in Europe ever had a Muslim immigrant or an immigrant problem until Bush invaded in 2003.
Unlike many European countries, the US population has always continued to grow because of immigration. And when immigrants come to the United States, they are for the most part assimilated into American culture. They don’t sit in banlieue, they don’t leech off the state–they are, by and large, productive citizens.
And lest you forget, while the Bush invasion of Iraq was certainly misguided, the United States suffered a cost that you did not. Overall, I have no patience for European hypocrisy. You outsource your entire military defense to the United States, then cry when you don’t like how it turns out. Consider the tax immigrants place on your state the money you should have been spending on your own military defense since the second world war. Or just consider it repayment for the half century of physical security the US Navy provides for your shipping lanes. Or payment to Americans for effectively underwriting peace between Japan and China–you know, your largest trade partner. Really, the US government isn’t picky. Any one will do.
@GreenieWeenie:
“They don’t sit in banlieue, they don’t leech off the state”-
Woow! You sound almost as “compassionate” as our friend Gaia above!
You two should form a club were you can happily exchange empty tirades, biased truths or random generalizations, all copiously soaked in racism.
You two would be happy AND we won’t have to read crass generalizations on group of people over here.
It’s a win-win situation !
The refugees/immigration crisis has shown the true feelings of UK & USA.
People you thought you knew are suddenly showing their true racist self.
In USA you read about people turning towards other etnicities – people who have been American for generations are told to leave the country and go home. If the whites weren’t hypocrites then they themselves should leave USA because that country originally belongs to Native Americans.
In UK and Europe – at least people here are not attacking people who have lived their whole lives here. They are instead lumping all new emigrated together as rapists and killers.
They are also showing the bitterness they have towards rich people – apparently people who are rich should not talk about the crisis and instead give their houses to house these refugees.
@Maya: cannot agree more. it infuriates me!
Agreed, Maya. The same thing is happening in Australia. Until 6 months ago we had a Prime Minister who thrived on dividing people and causing hate, fear and division. His toxic legacy is still around. I am stunned at how we don’t know our own country(wo)men and I lose a bit of faith in humanity every time I read such hateful and racist posts on Facebook and elsewhere.
People who are worried about their country and culture shouldn’t be called “racist”.
@Bibi: racism is attaching specific stereotypes to a group of people…. well well well take a look on this thread…
And “worrying about your country and culture” was exactly what let to the Shoah…for you to know.
Wow! So much awful and wrong there… So so much …-shake head-
ps: I am european and I will fight tooth and nail till my very last breathe for people who are escaping the horror , desperation and hell can be welcomed with compassion and help rather than ignorant racism…. these migrants are chased by the death that is Isis are we going to let them die at our borders just because… (like these poor little children bodies on greek beaches) … just because “social care that is paid with taxes”
People who try to ignore the misery and pain of others should be feel the deep burn of shame and realize that their so-called values and dignity were sorted only by the blind hazard of birth.
“these migrants are chased by the death”
Let’s not refute the fact that these people are not chased by death in Turkey or in Greece or in many European countries.
They don’t have the luxury to choose a country for themselves. They should go where they are sent. And yet, miraculously they only want to go to rich countries, like Germany, UK, Sweden, etc.
And no, I am no racist, just because people like you say it so. I am just stating the facts.
@Bibi81:
They want to go to countries where they can survive, provide for their family and re-build their life… rich countries of course! How can they do that in Turkey and Greece where the locals are already struggling.
If you escape you don’t want to die from hunger you know…
And I feel more than a bit of racism. not from this specific comment, but from all your comments as a whole….defending culture and country by rejecting migrants is a very very specific form of patriotism .
I love my country and my culture, I don’t see how rejecting desperate migrants (who are an extremely small minority comparing to the population) has something to do with protecting it
“They should go where they are sent” – That doesn’t sound racist at all!!…. wink wink! This is shocking that such a sentence is applied to talk about human beings.
@Bibi81- Would you prefer them to come to Spain? There are so many people who are out of work, squatting in houses (some they used to own until the bank repossessed them) without electricity, begging outside of supermarkets, and if chased off by staff, getting their food from bins (garbage cans) like the stray cats – And these are Spanish people trying to live in their own country. Don’t believe me? Come take a look; I will introduce you to a couple of hundred in my town of 30,000
gaia, I hope you never have to experience what the refugees have but, if you do, that you are met with more kindness and compassion than you are showing here.
Let’s hope some of these people never have a situation where they lose everything and hope someone cares enough to help.
If the only thing you can come up with is she should take them to her home.. you have added nothing to the conversation.
You should completely boycott the US. No more flying on airplanes, no Facebook, no light bulbs, and NO Celebitchy.
LOL! Excellent @KB (plus we will benefit greatly from their absence overhere)
Wow @gaia which hole did you appear from. You really shouldn’t tar every man with same brush cause you know every Muslim refugee is a plunderer and badly behaves which I assume means abusive. Honestly what the eff is wrong with you…. Smh it seems to me you believe every rhetoric the media shills you about immigrants and refugees. I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if you supported TRUMP cause you seem really ignorant.
Americans need to sit down and shut up about this issue. You have caused this mess and have no right to lecture those who live in Europe about acceptance of immigrants. Show yor empathy for the few women in refugee centres that are sexually abused by the male refugees and the European woman who have to work with the almost 70% of male immigrants. Read European newspapers and educate yourself about the political crisis caused by American “allies” Turkey and Saudi Arabia who are pushing millions of muslim men towards Europe. The EU is falling apart, the open borders are history and the unrest is brewing in EU countries.
The one who needs to sit down and shut up about this issue is you, gaia.
Gaia, you are stating the facts, that is EXACTLY what is happening in Europe.
Sadly, I don’t think this process can be stopped.
@gaia..how are Americans responsible for who the EU governments allow in?
Hows about that boycott of all things American, I suggested up thread? No TV, no mobile phones!
gaia: where are you from?
@bibi81: same question.
You seem to be from countries who were lucky enough to get into Europe, who benefits from it but don’t want to abid to one of its democratic rules: promoting freedom and democracy (there are very specific written articles to many european treaties who adress specifically the migrants and how the countries are binded to help them, and how much, if they accept this treaty)
You want to know what’s Europe problem? It’s not the migrants at all. It’s the fact that there are two level of strikingly different levels of wealth and democracy.
In some eastern countries, being a jew or a rom is still dangerous for your life we don’t even talk about the gays or black who are openly treated almost like animals or witches…
So take a seat and reflect on the sorry state of europe, and no it’s not defending our culture and country. The fact that you are using the word “country” proves that you are shipping alone and not in Europe at all. So if you not happy get out of it and let Europe progress.
Humanity and democracy are progress. Nothing good has been ever produced by “defending our culture and country”
I read a lot about the situation in Europe and it is a mess …. But that seems to be the result of cultural differences and of course, bad apples. Not sure why the US is getting the blame though.
Celebitchy is becoming less of a fun read though. I used to love the funny bitchy comments. Now it’s anger and finger pointing. Where’s Leanne Rimes when you need her?
Again, Gaia, you need a history lesson. The United States has much to answer for since the 1980’s, but if you go just a smidgen back, you will find that it was entirely a European colonialism issue that began the madness. France, the UK, and Russia liked to play the carve up the map for resources game back when the United States was still an isolationist country that only got itchy when people tried to pull that crap in our hemisphere.
US involvement grew over the decades, and we are responsible, as a nation, for the mistakes made in the last thirty years. But the United States didn’t “cause this.” Read a book. And sit your uppity, uneducated, anti-American backside down until you’ve done it.
There is plenty of blame to spread, but what needs to happen now is solution-oriented. You can hate America every day of your life. We’re used to it. But solutions are what we need. Anti-Americanism is cute and easy and probably makes you a place at the cool kids’ table…but it doesn’t solve any problems.
She looks … wet? And kind of ridiculous in that second picture. I like her jacket more than anything.
@Grant, who wrote: “She looks … wet? And kind of ridiculous in that second picture. I like her jacket more than anything.”
Did you miss the “Gets Caught in Huge Storm” portion of the article title?
She was in a rainstorm. Of course she is going to look wet. Rainwater is…..wet! Duh.
LOL…oops, somebody didn’t read the article or the title of this post.
I love this woman so much in all her skeletal beauty….every single wrinkle, nerve and all her mental issues included..this is true beauty that has walked through fire. This is feministic power in all it’s glory.
Hmmmm … ever hear of the term “backhanded compliment?”
“this is true beauty that has walked through fire. ”
That is a very apt description. Yes, she’s been to hell, but then she came back, and now she is stronger than ever.
Yeesh @theonly, that was a doozy of a backhanded ugly compliment with a side of slander. Talk about thinly veiled aggression.
Mental issues? Just stop.
Seriously, why do some sad excuses for women hate her so much?
Reserve your distaste and viciousness for someone like Trump who could destroy the country, or Dick Cheney who almost did.
Trying to grind a beautiful movie star humanitarian mom under your bitter boots is futile, and just shows all the envy, jealousy and black heartedness you’re trying to hide.
I’m glad she brought up that most of the refugees ultimately want to go home, I think that’s someone many people forget.
something, not someone. Too early.
yeah, there’s too much of “they just want to come here to get free stuff!” being perpetuated.
ugh…people suck sometimes.
“most of the refugees ultimately want to go home, ”
People that have reached the rich European countries have a different opinion. They are going to stay and bring also their families.
Lots of people migrate to other countries with their families and go back home eventually. And you act like every country in Europe is rich. If they’re so rich then yes they can afford to pay for any and all labor entering the country for work.
Laughing and smiling in the rain…gorgeous.. can’t recall the last time I’ve done either.
Stay safe and healthy Ang! <3
I wonder why she is walking alone in the first picture. Maybe that was the photo op? It seems like you would not walk without other people in a situation like that, orchestrated by the U.N. But she does seem passionate. However, I question the minimal-to-no make up comment, clearly she is wearing sort of heavy eye make up, foundation, blush, and a pinkish lipstick. It is the *natural look* but people can often use a lot of make up to achieve it. Look on YouTube! 🙂
@TMC, who wrote: “It is the *natural look* but people can often use a lot of make up to achieve it. Look on YouTube!”
Are any of these people standing in pouring rain without the ‘heavy amount’ of ‘natural looking’ makeup streaking down their faces?
Haven’t you heard of waterproof make up. Why shame Angie for using make up?
She was walking to the press stand to give her speech
You win tmc, she may have on eyebrow pencil.
I guess she’s not beautiful like we all thought. (Eye roll) Call the presses. Scrub the interwebs for all most beautiful comments. Jolie is possibly wearing eye brow pencil – she forfeits the crown.
Eyebrow pencil, turning ugly ducklings into ugly ducklings with eyebrows since time and memoriam.
Some should seek help for the decade long bitter-itis they still experience when confronted with that face.
I absolutely 100% percent adore her. I never ever use this word but she is literally Goals. To use her immense celebrity to help out people and give voices to those who does not have it is such a simple but rare task.
Would much rather reading stories like this, a woman trying to bring awarness to a substantial issue, than another tale of Kim K’s faux feminist struggle, who she gave flowers to or what obnoxious leotard and fur she’s wearing.
This plus 1000000
Love her and all the good she is trying to do.
I just wanted to say…It’s really inspiring to see a truly decent human being. She really is genuine. She has worked consistently and has put herself in situations most other H’wood snowflakes wouldn’t dare to do. Thank you, AJ.
She has been true to this cause since the very beginning, trying to bring the faces of these refugees to the world particularly women and children. She really is the reincarnation of Audrey Hepburn, for me. She’s an idol of mine, not only because we share self destructive pasts, but because she has not let her past define her negatively. I work on that every day. She used what she put herself through to build compassion, empathy and a family rather than let it become bitterness or regret; that is why she is so beautiful.
Saint
No, not a saint. Just a human being using the resources available to her to bring awareness and some relief to other humans living through a deplorable situation. She is doing what I would hope others with the means and public presence would do were I to be caught in the same circumstances. Love her for the compassion she shows to others.
I think what Gaia is referring to, is the US involvement in the conflict in Syria, supporting the opposition with weapons and funds (which later backfired when IS split off, by then well equipped thanks to US money). You should read up on it. Your ignorance is kind of sad. Germany and Sweden have not been involved in this war. Yet have let in a large number of refugees. How many has the US taken in? (Last I read they could still not get Congress to agree to 10000 ….., because of the risk that there are Islamists among them). The US has well integrated its immigrants in the past so that “they don’t leech on the welfare State” (the wording wow), but that is because they handpick their immigrants with their quotas. But it is not only the US, the UK has also not let in many Syrian refugees yet, despite having been involved in this war. And wow cultural differences, yes that must be it. That is our problem. Well Germany for example took in the equivalent of 1% of its population in one year, fully aware that costs will be carries by the tax payers, Sweden even more. Maybe we wait until the US takes in 4 Million refugees in one year and then see how successful they are with the integration, and then we discuss again Pandy? As I said, maybe things have changed now, but US was so afraid of bad apples that Obama could not even get them to accept 10000 carefully selected Syrian refugees. Did any of you write to your Conressman or -woman or go to demonstrations to change this heartless attitude?
clap clap clap! Bravo! So well-said!
Except that gala’s wording was as stated super appalling and not putting in perspective migrants but much more “how can Europe reject them “.Otherwise thanks for the super informed comment (I am French and my country’s position is just revolting towards migrants)
I don’t think that was what Gaia was referring to at all. But you said this very well. This is my number one issue with US policy over the last several years. You encapsulated all of it. Well done.
She’s amazing and inspiring, end of.
She is really an inspiring human being. Talks the talk, walks the walk.
Just finished reading about Katie bucket, the difference between these two is just night and day.
Dear Brits how about a petition for a trade?
every time i see her i think of how Cannot and Willnot should be doing this. like Will-nots mother. , Angelina is dedicated amd deeply rooted in the issues shaking the Planet. i can never thNk her enough in my prayers
Respect.
Love her. I think she’s the only celebrity I’d seriously fangirl over if I met her in real life. Shine on Angelina. Shine on.
Legitimate refugees and asylum seekers have the right to seek asylum in the first country they land in. They’re not supposed to be able to pick and choose which country they declare asylum in, they are grateful for the safety of a war-free country, and they especially do not pick and choose on the basis of the money they’ll receive. Because legitimate refugees and asylum seekers are FLEEING FOR THEIR LIVES. Legitimate refugees are not economic migrants.
There are “refugees” and “asylum seekers” travelling to Europe via private planes. There are “refugees” who flush or lose their passports. Many are from countries other than Syria. Many migrants do not want to assimilate or integrate, and that is a legitimate problem, especially when they have different value systems (in some cultures, there is no such thing as rape and if a woman smiles, you’re allowed to “take” her, pooping in the streets is a thing that some countries still do and it’s a sanitary issue).
Veterans and pensioners are being evicted from their homes in order to make room for refugees. Their are “no-go” zones in the UK, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, etc, where it was previously safe. Pickpocketing, sexual assaults, sexual harassment, etc, have all increased. Countries like Sweden and Germany have their police and governments telling women to stay home or wear a headscarf if they go out. The sheer number of children who have been assaulted in swimming pools is insane. “Refugees” are often released when they perpetrate said crimes, only to reoffend.
No background checks are being done (which is why Europe has let in ISIS members, this is on the record/in mainstream media), tens of thousands of “refugees” cannot be accounted for, the cost of refugees is threatening the social welfare state throughout Europe, the law is not being applied evenly or consistently amongst longterm citizenry and refugees, no age checks are being done, and Syrians who are left behind – primarily women, by the way, as most of the “refugees” are able-bodied men between the ages of 18-40 – are saying that there’s no one left to fight and/or restore the country.
I hate when I see suffering children or animals or adults, but the solution isn’t just to invite them all to my house. My household can only reasonably accommodate and support so many people before it collapses, and the same is true for countries. Countries are boundaried places, and they are that way for a reason. Those boundaries determine which laws, morals, etc, govern that space. A free-for-all where we bring in literally millions of new inhabitants who may or may not respect our laws, morals or values is an obviously bad idea. That’s not racism or condoning suffering or being privileged. It’s being rational, it’s being realistic, it’s noting that everyone is equal but we’re not all the same (and that’s okay!).
Not everyone who claims to be a refugee is a refugee, and we have a protocol and system in place for dealing with refugees. We have safeguards, we have appeals processes, we have checks and balances. We’re ignoring all of that right now, and to what end? The European Union is close to collapse. Free speech is increasingly censored and outright criminalized. There are things you can’t say in Europe, but you CAN molest a child and get away with it. What kind of morals allow and enable child molestation and rape? Why is saying this uneven application of laws, rules, morals, etc, racist?
Also, the extent to which people are policing and shaming the comments of European commenters who are saying everything isn’t all honky dory is insane and also PRIVILEGED. US citizens, Canadian citizens, and, in fact, most citizens of most countries have controlled immigration and refugee and asylum-seeking. This is unprecedented, and most of us haven’t lived through it, so why are we telling people who are and have been living through it that they’re wrong, that they’re racist and to shut up? We’ve been protected from the state of affairs currently unfolding in Europe. They’re talking about their lived reality and everyday experience.
Agreed, Jem. 100%.
The United States takes in masses of immigrants every year, but with the Syrian situation, our government was concerned about the very problems that European cities and designated refugee areas are dealing with.
To tell Europeans who have witnessed the violence, the shortages, and the crowding that they are racist and need to be quiet is appalling.
I want to hear ALL of the perspectives and stories. I sincerely hope that my government will provide asylum for a fair number of these people. Most Americans agree with me. But we don’t want to make a mistake. We have literally millions of undocumented immigrants, a very porous southern border, a tanking economy, and…we have eyes. We see what is happening in places where European countries just followed the mandates and opened the gates.
I want to hear all of the perspectives, but the one-liners and the epithet flinging is of no interest, and it doesn’t help anyone. “Americans caused this,” “Europeans are racist,” blah, blah, blah. Get it all out of the system and then can we please figure out how to keep these people from starving to death.
@Jem: “They’re not supposed to be able to pick and choose which country they declare asylum in” –
This point is not correct as the Geneva convention states the exact opposite. They can ask for asylum in whatever country of their choice
“Veterans and pensioners are being evicted from their homes in order to make room for refugees. Their are “no-go” zones in the UK, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, etc, where it was previously safe. Pickpocketing, sexual assaults, sexual harassment, etc, have all increased.”
That’s exactly where racism lies: making a generalization out of a few various facts. … or Urban legends ( the evictions).oh and Denmark isn’t taking much refugees
“Many migrants do not want to assimilate or integrate, and that is a legitimate problem, especially when they have different value systems ”
That’s a real mix up here between economic migration and refugees… not racist right. And What an assumption: do you know each of them?
“Not everyone who claims to be a refugee is a refugee, and we have a protocol and system in place for dealing with refugees. We have safeguards, we have appeals processes, we have checks and balances. We’re ignoring all of that right now, and to what end? The European Union is close to collapse. Free speech is increasingly censored and outright criminalized. There are things you can’t say in Europe, but you CAN molest a child and get away with it.”
Wow from fake refugees, to child molestation, rape and free speech you are grabbing everything (quite irrationally) so you can to try to cover up a supposed” reasonable” perspective that there is an explanation to why we (I am European, western euro) should reject these refugees and let them die at our borders.
So should we let die these people: a- because they don’t have the same values as us,b- because they are mostly males, c- because we should focus on child molestation, d-just because they are filfthy middle-eastern males without any of our values and trying to rape some kids (not far from your point actually)?
For you to know: these refugees are treated like wild animals here: parked in camps, chased on freeways at gunpoint if they dare to “escape”” (in France there are images of this, people running between cars chased by the police), they are listed (remember last time human beings were listed…right?), in some countries (Denmark) their belongings are immediately confiscated in others they are escorted by the army like sheep on freeways , circled so they cannot escape, to another country…this is the European reality on the refugee crisis
For those who are complaining in Europe: they don’t even have to deal with these people as they see them only on tv, they don’t interact with locals , they are parked !!!
And oddly the countries who are complaining are not even taking in refugees…; and are the ones who are taking away most of the financial help from the UEE(I have a line in my annual taxes dedicated to “reimbursement of european countries debt” FCS!)
Your comment was too much of a mishmash to seem rational and unbiased
and oh dear we don’t have free speech in Europe… since WW2 and it’s good thing! if one says a racist , biggot, hateful speech he should be able to take the consequences of his words and face prosecution : so you can be fined for racism or homophobe speech… and it’s a very good thing: it is a loud reminder that a speech carrying hate is not harmless
ps: try to read on the migration crisis more dans just sensational marginal various facts
@Jem “This is unprecedented”: actually not true
This is how the world turns since its beginning, from the sassanid empire, to the mongolian invasion, the roman one, middle age, WWI and WWII… migrations due to wars are the norm in building the world and changing the shape of each countries.
And as an american your country is a perfect illustration of that so if you believe in protection some morals and values that are suposedly specifically attached to a certain place, then you should be packing and handing over back their land to the native americans then (just as twisted as the “thinking” you were trying to promote”
Thank You for that post!!
I agree with every word you said.
The nation I admire the most in the way they are handling the reception of Syrian refugees is Canada. I’m an American, and our neighbors to the north are a fantastic nation of people who handle these type of asylum situations very well.
I am hoping and praying that my own country follows their example.
It’s a pleasant surprise to read one’s sober attempt to touch upon the complexity and enormity of the refugee issue!
Maybe change your name to Gem?
By the way, in which European country is child molestation legal? (genuinely asking)
@PegL: your comment is utterly funny, as you even believed that child molestation is legal! lol
She’s an inspiration of mine. She found a cause close to her heart and ran with it, and never stopped! I really am passionate about things a few things. Such as a woman’s right to choose what happens to her body. There is a horrible story on the news right now that on a college campus, a female student gave birth in a bathroom. Too scared to come forward or tell her strict parents. Let’s just say it ended tragically and it SO easily could have been prevented in several ways. I gladly would have taken her baby for her. I hate that this is still happening in 2016. I just don’t know how to go about helpings? So many of he topics are ‘hot’. It’s just about access and reaching out. I also see too many shaken baby cases in our news. We need more safe havens and to make the locations known! No stigma attached! More education? I’m not sure the answer but I want so badly to be involved in a solution!!!!
It makes me so happy when people can see that the first victim of terrorism and extremist Muslims are their follow Muslims…. people in North America know so little about the middle east and think everyone from there is more likely to be a violent terrorist.
Thank you Angie.
Truly impressed by this woman and how she uses her fame to help others and this comes from a die hard team Aniston fan when the break-up happened. As for the people mocking her looks, seriously?? She is truly a humanitarian who is bringing awareness to the plight of the Syrian refugees and I have nothing but respect for her regardless of her past.
Makes me proud to be a human.