MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Sean Penn should return his Malibu estate to the Mexicans

Sean Penn during his press conference in Uruguay’s seat of the Executive

By Dr Tim Stanley - During his recent tour of Argentina and Uruguay as UN ambassador at large for Haiti made some unfortunate statements regarding the Falklands/Malvinas diplomatic dispute arguing that “It would be nothing short of bullying, to not sit down and diplomatically negotiate a fair sharing of any resources discovered between Argentina and the United Kingdom”.

Likewise he described as unthinkable that “the United Kingdom made a conscious decision to deploy a Prince within the military to the Malvinas”.

In Buenos Aires Penn made headlines when he called Britain’s presence in the Falklands “colonialist, ludicrous and archaic”.

His remarks did not go unnoticed and one of those comments is from Dr Tim Stanley, a historian of the United States. His biography of Pat Buchanan is out now. His personal website is www.timothystanclye.co.uk and on Twitter @timothy_stanley

The piece was originally published in The Telegraph.

I would like to make a statement about the growing crisis in the Americas. It’s time for justice. It’s time for liberty. It’s time to end the ludicrous and archaic commitment to colonialist ideology. It’s time Sean Penn handed his Malibu estate back to the Mexicans.

Sean Penn pretends to be a friend of the developing world, but really he is not. To be fair, his recent call for the Falkland Islands to be returned to Argentina was an admirable strike against capitalist imperialism. Moreover, I and the entire North Korean press corps cheered him on when he flew to Iraq to parley with Saddam Hussein, or when he spoke about Hugo Chavez in such glowing terms. But there have always been hints that his sympathy isn’t really with the workers at all. Aside from that time that he spent 32 days in prison for hitting an extra, his net worth of an estimated 150 million dollars is a bit of a giveaway.

His continued occupation of Malibu is an unacceptable mockery of national self-determination. The Mexicans owned that stretch of real estate well into the early 19th century and it was stolen by the Americans in a naked act of imperialist aggression. America’s claim over Malibu is tenuous and rooted in patriarchy. Sean Penn’s house is a mocking reminder of that brute chauvinism, with its high white walls and spacious interiors. Its swimming pool is an insult to the honor of the Mexican people.

Now, I know that some will say that the Mexicans never actually lived on Sean Penn’s estate. But how many of them have worked there? Think of the maids, the cleaners, the butlers, the pool boys, the cooks, the gardeners. Think of the sweat that has dripped pouring Martinis, or the blood that was spilt pruning the roses. Truly, Sean Penn’s estate is part of Aztlan.

If diplomatic discussions break down, who could blame Mexico for resorting to military action to reclaim Mr Penn’s estate? Not I. Some might say that it would be an act without legal sanction or genuine historical cause. But that’s not the point. The people of Mexico want Sean Penn’s estate, so they should have it. Because stealing stuff from the rightful owners is the only way to combat colonialism.