HOLLYWOOD (Variety) - Amid criticism of celebrities with antiwar views, leaders of the Screen Actors Guild have warned against possible blacklisting of thesps.þþThe union's national executive committee delivered the warning Monday in a statement asserting that such a threat had emerged in debate over a possible U.S. invasion of Iraq. SAG's announcement was accompanied by a statement of support from the Intl. Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees.þþ``A disturbing trend has arisen in the dialogue,'' SAG said. ``Some have recently suggested that well-known individuals who express 'unacceptable' views should be punished by losing their right to work. This shocking development suggests that the lessons of history have, for some, fallen on deaf ears.''þþSAG refused to ID organizations or individuals who have made such a threat but pro-war groupss, such as Citizens Against Celebrity Pundits, have generated boycott threats. ``Even a hint of the blacklist must never again be tolerated in this nation,'' SAG said.þþThesps who have been active on the antiwar front include Sean Penn, Mike Farrell, Martin Sheen, Susan Sarandon, Edward Norton, Tyne Daly, Danny Glover, Rob Reiner, Penelope Cruz, Alec Baldwin, Janeane Garofalo, Woody Harrelson and Rosario Dawson. Farrell is a member of SAG's national board.þþSAG asserted that showbiz had failed to protect those persecuted during the late 1940s and 1950s.þþ``During this shameful period, our own industry prostrated itself before smear campaigns and witch hunters rather than standing on the principles articulated in the nation's fundamental documents,'' the guild said. ``Today, having come to grips with its past, having repudiated the insult of loyalty oaths and examined its own failings, our industry, perhaps more than any other, understands the necessity of guarding and cherishing those rights for which Americans have fought and died.'' þþþ
Source: NY Times
