Madonna Says She's Pro-Peace, Not Anti-American
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Madonna (news - web sites) may be anti-war, but don't call her anti-American.
The Michigan-born Material Girl, who made headlines with reports that a music video for her latest song, "American Life," carries a strong anti-war message, said it should not be interpreted as critical of her homeland or President Bush (news - web sites). "I feel lucky to be an American citizen for many reasons, one of which is the right to express myself freely," Madonna said in a statement on her Web site (www.madonna.com).
"I am not anti-Bush. I am not pro-Iraq," she said. "I am pro-peace. I have written a song and created a video which expresses my feelings about our culture and values and illusions of what many people believe is the American dream -- the perfect life."
The 44-year-old entertainer added that she hopes the video will provoke "thought and dialogue" and does not expect everyone to agree with her point of view.
"I am grateful to have the freedom to express these feelings and that's how I honor my country," she said.
According to Madonna's spokeswoman, Liz Rosenberg, the video opens at a fashion show then "escalates into a mad frenzy depicting the catastrophic repercussions and horror of war."
Hollywood celebrities have lined up to oppose a threatened war with Iraq and many of them, including actors George Clooney, Ed Harris and Dustin Hoffman as well as director Spike Lee, have slammed Bush.
Madonna's ex-husband, Sean Penn, visited Iraq on his own "fact-finding" mission and said after returning that the Bush administration was "misguided." |
