people are mad, because first off she is adopting an african child, second she is doing this like she is picking up a car, or a new dog, she and her team release a press memo to the media, making it a big event.

When Angelina did it, it wasn't on no big stage, she got those two kids and shut the fuck up about, and kept it moving.

While Madonna is obivously bored, her Jesus burning christ act, wasn't as big of a publicty stunt, so she does this.

Ugly ass beetlejuice looking bitch

LadyQ said:

not all celebrity children end up fucked up

isn't it funny how Madonna generates controversy even when she's not trying to? Controversy follows her wherever she goes.lol.The controversy from her recent onstage "crucifixion" had just started to die down,and now she's back in the news with yet another uproar

LadyQ said:

That whole his own people thing is very close minded. SOunds like you're saying the home that Madonna provides will not have any love in it, which I assume is implied. Frankly, her family life and how much she has given to her children has affected her career (or at least her work ethic). I'm hardly one to use the words politically correct ever, but I think the over PC generalization that people are better off in their own communities. I aggree with that too some extent, but I don't think Madonna is the white devil for trying to give a child in a very poor place a much better life.

I like the fact that Madonna has to pay to keep the child with her family...She wanted to adopt a child and if the child was not up for adoption, why did she adopt him?

KingKrazy said:

Right, delusional....She's adopting a child out of boredom. Only Madonna is capable of this criticism!

KingKrazy said:

"A big event"? Madonna actually kept this a secret for many months,while she and her husband were going through the adoption process.The only reason it is now "a big event" is because the media focuses on her every move.With all due respect to Angelina Jolie,Madonna is a much bigger,more popular star.There is no way in the world that Madonna---the biggest female pop superstar on the planet---could adopt a child without it being a media circus.It's not her fault that the media obsesses over everything she does! If people are mad about this,then screw 'em.It's really none of their business anyway.

The reason of this thread sickens me. prince.org used to leave alone these kind of subjects

LadyQ said:

There is nothing selfish or suspicious about Madonna's actions.She is doing her part to make a difference.Many celebrities talk about the poor,they release cheesy "We Are The World"-type singles,but here you have Madonna,putting her money where her mouth is.In addition to the adoption,she has also donated over $6 million to Africa,and is planning to do some work with the orphanges in Malawi.Furthermore,she is using her fame to focus the world's attention to the plight of these children.Why must she be criticized for that? I don't see the platinum-selling rappers over there,doing this.They're more concerned with their bling-bling,and degrading women in their videos

SoulAlive said:

Why did the media go down there? I remember seeing clips of her dancing and stuff. I thought maybe it was for something having to do with her fansite or maybe her charities?

Unfortunately for Madonna--as far as public opinion is concerned--it's sort of live by the sword, die by the sword. Once again, the public is just quick to judge her because in the past she has appeared to be a bit opportunistic.

I don't think the public can sometimes separate the good from the bad or maybe it's the media?? Well somebody can't separate the good from the bad??

Between the timing of it all (with Angelina Jolie doing the same), and the videos of her dancing with the locals (which looked very patronizing IMO), the whole thing does feel very opportunistic. It's one thing for her to pick up a religion or something like that, to fill a void in her life, but adopting a kid is a lifelong commitment. Even if she started the process months ago, that's still a relatively short time to decide to adopt a kid. How much time has she really spent with the father and other relatives to understand the impact this is going to have on them and their kid?

Tom said:

How much time did the biological father spend deciding to give his child up for adoption? It's not customary in most adoptions for the sets of parents to come to a consensus about the process. The fact that the parties are involved at all is the required understanding -- one party decides they cannot care for a child and other party says they can.

Isel said:

I really do not understand the criticism- as far as we can gather everything concerning the adoption is fine.
Madonnas interest in the village and it's people started late last year- not a weekend decision as the media loves to suggest- so what's the big deal.
I love when we all, from our privileged backgrounds, think that we know and can relate to others in certain situations.
Don't you all think that the boy will be happier with a loving and healthy family with a future? Instead of probably being dead this time next month.
Madonna has been promoting this cause way before the Confessions tour began, so she should be praised for standing by her interests and leading by example!...
I like how we accept being told what to do or how to life by celebrities- but as soon as someone shows compassion or ideas then they become dangerous or ignorant.
I think Madonna adopting a child that may now live longer than 2 years old is a positive thing-
people get over the fact that it's Madonna who's records you may hate or didn't like her hair in the 80's, and celebrate that someone with money and fame finally put it to good use...Elton, The Queen etc. TAKE NOTE!
Steven.

Madonna: How dare she!

MADONNA'S Malawian baby David Banda has spent the first year of his life living in one of the world's poorest countries. He will now live in one of the richest.

For the past 12 months he's been living in a dilapidated orphanage with 100 other babies where food and clothing are in short supply.

He is now settling into a luxurious English home where he will want for nothing.

His dead mother and two brothers can never be replaced but he is now being welcomed into a new family, with a mother, father, brother and sister.

He will be educated, have access to the best medical care and can expect to live a lot longer than he would have had he stayed in Malawi, where the life expectancy is 37.

Makes you weep doesn't it?

According to some, it should. Well, sorry, but I'm not even welling up.

Poor David has been adopted by Madonna and that apparently is a fate that some seem to think is worse than death.

While I agree that the process in which the Material Girl has gone about the adoption has been questionable - and a tad on the tacky side - I'm really struggling to see why she's being crucified.

Pass me a hammer and nails if she and husband Guy Ritchie make Swept Away 2 but here they actually appear to be trying to do something good.

They've taken a child from a miserable, wretched existence and offered him a life full of hope and promise.

The mongrels!

It's been argued that instead of taking David from his home and buying him a $12,300 rocking horse, Madonna should have pumped her cash into his village to help the entire community and let them get on with it.

She has reportedly kicked the can to the tune of $5 million to put into programs supporting the country's orphans.

She's also committed another $1.5 million to making a documentary about the African nation's plight.

$6.5 million is hardly an inconsiderable sum - and you would expect that there is more where that came from.

Her involvement has got people around the world talking about Malawi, where there are more than one million orphans and the average income is less than $1 a day.

In the past 12 months the impoverished nation has barely rated a mention in the media, other than their decent showing in the netball at the Commonwealth Games.

Sure, Madonna could afford to chip in even more without affecting her wardrobe budget - particularly now that seems to consist of just tracksuits. But how can you put a price tag on David's potential anyway?

The last thing I want to do is suggest Madonna is some sort of saint but it is just possible that she is investing in and helping to create what could become that village's greatest and most influential asset - David himself.

Assuming that Madonna and her family live up to their promise to ensure David is aware of his roots - and let's face it, she's hardly going to be able to keep it from him - his ongoing connection to Malawi will keep the focus on his country's plight.

And who knows what he might do as a young man.

Maybe he'll prance around London's nightclubs like a git but maybe he'll dedicate his life to improving the lives of those condemned by virtue of their birthplace to a life most of us could not begin to imagine.

One of the things that seems to irk people is that David has a father who is alive and relatively well, which should have ruled him out of being considered for adoption if you accept some of the hysterical reaction.

But there is nothing unusual about adopting a child whose parents are alive.

Like most children in Australia, David was put up for adoption by his biological family because they believed they couldn't raise him and another family could do a better job.

It must be galling to anyone who has waited months and years to adopt a child to see Madonna jump the queue and circumvent the rules thanks to her celebrity status and enormous bank balance.

But it has been legally sanctioned - not only by Malawi's courts but also by the boy's father, Yohane.

Armed with an interim order from the courts, Madonna whisked David out of the country before a number of human rights organisations prepared to seek an injunction stopping her.

Those organisations who have been thwarted are furious but David's father is reportedly "ecstatic'' that his son is on his way to a better life.

"I appealed to the self-styled lovers of David to leave my baby alone,'' he said.

"Where were they when David didn't have milk when his mother died? Do they want him to go back to the orphanage?''

Well Yohane, it would appear the short answer is yes.

Over the next 18 months, Madonna and Ritchie's suitability as parents will be evaluated by the courts of Malawi.

Those organisations would do better helping David settle in to his new life and assisting Madonna ensure he never forgets his heritage rather than perpetuating a tug-of-war over a little boy just to prove a point.

Source: Naomi Toy, The Daily Telegraph (Australia)

ehuffnsd said:

WELL SAID- THAT PERSON SHOULD BE KNIGHTED!

LadyQ said:

WHile some celebrity children grow up to be spoiled brats, Madonna is clearly a good MOM to both her kids. I seriously doubt either one of them will turn out bad.

Madonna has an 18 month trial period to see if the child adjusts. Waiting and monitoring, I believe are in place because normally, agencies don't know who the the parents are...I believe everyone knows who Madonna is.

MikeMatronik said:

prince.org THRIVES on these subject. Always has.

stevenpottle said:

The boy's father is a fucking asshole. If he is well, why did he put the boy on an orphanage????
[Edited 10/18/06 9:50am]

ehuffnsd said:

Maybe he'll prance around London's nightclubs like a GIT -

MikeMatronik said:

because the boy would have a better life, I would guess. Maybe being in an orphanage meant a better life than being with his dad, who would have 2 mouths to feed instead of one.

yeah how dare she take that child out of a life of poverty, filth, sickness, starvation... who is fighting for the child's rights here! i demand that Bush step in and send this child back home... the child has a RIGHT to live there... and no one has the right to deny him that!

SlamGlam said:

MikeMatronik said:

the father is fucking poor.

madartista said:

I wish black folks (counting myself) can find the extra income that it would take to adopt African children.

The father of the 13-month-old boy Madonna wants to make part of her family criticized human rights groups who have challenged how the adoption is being handled and said his child should stay with the pop star.

Yohane Banda told The Associated Press on Wednesday he had entrusted his son to a Malawian orphanage after his wife died of childbirth complications, saying he was too poor to raise him alone. Now, he says, Madonna has given the boy a chance to have a family.

"Where were these people when David was struggling in the orphanage? These so-called human rights groups should leave my baby alone," he said. "As father I have OKed this, I have no problem. The village has no problem. Who are they to cause trouble? Please let them stop."

The Human Rights Consultative Committee, a coalition of 67 organizations, launched a legal challenge Tuesday, noting that Malawian regulations require prospective parents to stay with a child in Malawi for 18 to 24 months for assessment before the adoption is formalized. Madonna, though, was allowed to take the boy to England, where she has a home, and Malawian officials have said the family would be monitored there.

Children's advocates in Malawi have stressed they are not opposed to Madonna adopting David, but want to ensure rules meant to protect children aren't ignored.

Madonna and British film director husband Guy Ritchie spent eight days in Malawi and last Thursday signed adoption papers for David Banda. The boy's father countersigned the papers and High Court Justice Andrew Nyirenda issued the couple an "interim order" allowing them custody, a step toward adoption. The boy was flown to London on Monday.

Penston Kilembe, director of Child Welfare Services in Malawi's Ministry of Gender, Child Welfare and Community Services, told the AP the laws to which the civil rights groups referred in their challenge are "archaic." He said his government took into account the rights of children and families in allowing Madonna to pursue adoption.

"Madonna and her husband has broken no laws as far as government is concerned. They have followed all the legal steps," he said.
Madonna's attempt to adopt David has sparked a debate about how best to care for the millions of orphans in places like Malawi, a desperately poor country beset by drought and AIDS. Some children's advocates say children are best raised close to home, but AIDS has killed many of those in extended families who might once have cared for children in Malawi and elsewhere in Africa, leaving orphans in the hands of elderly grandparents, older siblings, strained orphanages _ or on the streets.

The case has drawn international attention.

The Italian Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema compared Madonna's taking custody of David to a "kidnapping" and called for clearer international rules, according to his spokesman, confirming accounts of his remarks in Italian media.

In a statement last week, the British development group ActionAid lauded Madonna for helping David and her wider projects for AIDS orphans in Malawi. It also called on rich Western nations to make good on promises to get AIDS drugs to patients in poor countries, and said individuals could make donations to help communities care for AIDS orphans, so that children could "grow up in their own culture, and if orphaned, with any remaining family they have left."

Madonna, rejecting the criticism of recent days, said in a statement Tuesday: "We have gone about the adoption procedure according to the law like anyone else who adopts a child. Reports to the contrary are totally inaccurate."

Banda's wife, Marita, 28, died a week after giving birth to David. The couple, who had been married for over 10 years, had two other sons who died in infancy from malaria.

"I was alone with a baby. I had no money. I couldn't buy him milk. That's why I surrendered him to the orphanage," said Banda.

Madonna found David at the Home of Hope Orphanage, which looks after more than 500 children who have lost one or both parents.

"Orphanage life is no good. We leave kids there because we can't look after them properly ourselves. Now my son has been taken by a kindhearted woman, these people want to bring him back to the orphanage," said Banda, standing in his small garden of onions and tomatoes.

He said Madonna and Ritchie promised him nothing apart from "love and care for my David."



MMVI The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

madartista said:

That's correct.Also,Tom pointed out that "adoption is a lifelong commitment".I'm sure that Madonna and Guy have thought about this,and they're in it for the long haul.So far,they have proven to be serious,dedicated parents.There's no reason to believe that this will change,adoption or no adoption.

Great Big hugs to you - you are so right!!!!

eleven said:

SpookyMuffin rocks! What would be even better- If SpookyMuffin were Prince William!!!

Illustrator said:

Probably because most non-elite Americans want blond-haired blue eyed babies.....or perhaps they can't afford to adopt a starving child from a land far away. Pick a country you would like to help and then start making calls to find out what it costs and what you have to go through.I don't mean to be rude or a smartass but you obviously have never been directly involved with the US system or any other adoption system.

And when the court system takes children away from adoptive parents there is a reason....probably much more than the media reports...if you can imagine that.

Furthermore federal adoption laws have changed a lot recently. Now the court system looks at the best interests of the child as opposed to biological relation. Sometimes it just takes a while to get it right...unfortunately, It's it's a fact of life.

Finally, don't rely on what you read in the papers to form an opinion on something so passionately personal...there job is sensationalization as opposed to information.

...sigh...if people only knew the baggage that comes with these babies..even a one year old child can be scarred for life from neglect. Well, here in the US it's called neglect - in other places it's called poverty.

sallysassalot said:

Why is it like she is picking up a car? How is her adopting different than say a middle class person that is non-religious adopting an innocent child that needs a home?

KingKrazy said: