Yidio Question of the Day: Should Best Actress Winner Natalie Portman Resign as Miss Dior Cherie?
by Richard Sharp
Last night, the always radiant (and currently pregnant) Natalie Portman won Best Actress at The Academy Awards for her tour de force role in “Black Swan.” During the ceremony, fashion and fragrance brand Dior ran ads featuring the elegant beauty as the “Miss Dior Cherie.”
Now today comes allegations that Dior Creative Director John Galliano was caught on video in a Paris bistro spewing hateful nonsense. The fashion icon was apparently quite drunk, and went on a brutally anti-semitic tirade.
As Yidio just reported, after a few words were exchanged Galliano, apparently went into a rant, saying that he "loves Hitler." He went on to tell the group, "People like you would be dead today. Your mothers, your forefathers would be (expletive) gassed and dead… "
Of course, Natalie Portman is Jewish, and not likely to take such harsh words lightly.
Which leads up to our Yidio Question of the Day: Should Natalie Portman resign her role as Miss Dior Cherie over John Galliano’s comments?
Yes: Hatred is hatred. There is no excuse for it, and no way to undo it once it’s been unleashed. John Galliano may be a talented designer, but in representing his designs, Natalie Portman, who is a role model to young women the world over, is condoning hatred and anti-semitism. She is at her highest profile position right now and should use it to stand up for tolerance. It’s the right thing to do.
No: While there is no excuse for John Galliano’s drunken, hateful rant, it is not indicative of the entire company, and has nothing to do with the fashions and fragrances Portman is representing. There’s no way to guarantee that any company is free of bigoted jerks, and to be honest, most companies probably aren’t.
Judgement:What the hell. Kick that gig to the curb. Portman has just assured herself a lifetime worth of work (if she wants it), and she’s in the position to use her profile to stand up for what’s right. John Galliano’s the Creative Director and Portman would literally be repping his designs. We can’t imagine seeing her wearing an “I Heart Mel Gibson” t-shirt, so why would she wear Dior designs?
What do you think?
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