Posted by: John Flick



I'm sure it was an honest mistake, but one that has offended many. Shrek star Cameron Diaz causing shrieks with a bag she carried on a trip to the Inca Ruins in Peru. Translated from Chinese, it reads "Serve The People." It's a nice message but, put in context, it doesn't sit well with many Peruvians. It's a famous political slogan by Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong, who brought chaos to Peru in the 1980s and early 1990s with a campaign of massacres, assassinations and bombings, when nearly 70,000 were killed.
Diaz has apologized and says she bought the bag not knowing the significance.
This story jumped out at me because I just saw "Blood Diamond" and was horrified with the deadly violence that surrounds diamond mining in parts of Africa. Americans are criticized globally for not being up on world history... or the history of our own country for that matter. Unfortunately, Cameron Diaz's bag adds to the backlash.