If Sean Penn could offer up one piece of universal advice, it would probably be āDonāt believe everything you read.ā
If you assumed this was in reference to how heās portrayed in the press, youād be partially correct. Itās more than that though: the award-winning humanitarian and two-time Oscar-winning actor would also be alludingĀ to the public perception of Haiti, a place he has personally invested his time and finances in, and his attention to, for the past six years. After an earthquake ravaged the Caribbean country in 2010, he founded J/P Haitian Relief Organization (HRO), which began as an emergency relief organization of 32 Americans. It has since expanded to a rank of nearly 200āmost of whom are Haitianāwith a goal of turning over the previously-built medical, educational and community development centers entirely to the Haitian people. Despite all the progress heās made, the country is far from escaping its reputation as the poorest country in the western hemisphere, but Penn wonāt bow out until the job is done. āThere was a commitment that we made to the country, and itās just unfinished business, I suppose. Thatās why weāre still here.ā
Thereās no doubt that the 56-year-old icon has doneāand continues to doāmore than his part to help Haiti escape its vicious cycle of poverty and insecurity. However, the countryās āOpen for Businessā slogan isnāt even close to being true right now, especially in the wake of the damage Hurricane Matthew inflicted upon the countryās southern region, destroying several villages and killing more than 800 people. Penn, however, places blame on more than Mother Nature. ā[Haiti] has been very close to staying open for business, and then it gets thrown back for two main reasons.ā He notes that one is because the countryās leaders and its wealthy residents seem to be overinvested in the comfort zone of a system that doesnāt allow for export, and demands that the country ābe a slave to the poor.ā The other, more pressing problem in his eyes is the media: ā[Members of the press have] been so incredibly irresponsible and uninformed in their reporting on Haiti, politically,ā he says, adding, āI think that a four-day visit is a lot more damaging than no visit at all. Thereās kind of an impatience with understanding culturally [and politically] what goes on.ā
Though he isnāt a fan of media in general, heās quick to praise Anthony Bourdainās early coverage of the nation on his food and travel reality show,Ā No Reservations.Ā The celebrity chef and TV personality turned what could have been a frothy segment on Haitiās cuisine and culture into an insightful look at its 2011 climate. Penn filmed a small segment for the series and, after it aired, took himself out for a meal in the nationās capital, Port-au-Prince. āI remember going into a restaurant that night and people had seen [the piece]. Everyone was saying, āFinally, somebodyĀ gotĀ Haiti,āā he recalls.
Somebody besides him, that is to say. Because what started off for Penn as a two-week trip to ālend a handā distributing pain medications like morphine and ketamine to trauma centers turned into a nine-month pilgrimage. Bottom line: he wanted to do some good, and he wanted to be close enough to his daughter Dylan and son Hopper that, if something serious happened back home in Los Angeles, heād be a quick plane ride away from the US. āNow, some might say, āWell, why not stick to the United States [if you want to do some good]?āā he notes. āIt really just happened this way: once I got to Haiti, like so many other people, I fell in love with itāthe people there, the possibilities that is has.ā
He also believes that the United States has a āsacred debtā to the Haitians in order to correct some of the mistakes it made in the pastāa debt owed, if you willāand that it really pays to get the country out of trouble for the first time and help provide secure footing. āItās not going to be an overnight processānobody ever said it would beābut I think that the people are ready to take care of themselves, and thatās when things change.ā
And change it will be a-coming in a very, very big way. In August, Penn and J/P HRO announced their participation in Haiti Takes Root, an ambitious, long-term commitment from both the Haitian and French governments, as well as billionaire Sean Parker via The Parker Foundation. The ten-year, $300 million initiative seeks to repair the country from within by increasing technical expertise and strengthening environmental governance. The goal is to improve government relations and both ecotourism and environmental legislation. Needless to say, itās a pretty ambitious undertaking, but Penn and his pals are up to the challenge.
āA powerful consortium of commitments have been made from the French government, to the Haitian government, to many international NGOs, and of course the Parker Foundation,ā he says of the collaboration. ā[Sean Parker] signed on as the piper. Heās an extremely generous philanthropist and I knock wood that things are going well for him [in his other philanthropic ventures, including The Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy] because heās really bold. He is a disrupter and I love him.ā
One might say that Penn is somewhat of a disrupter himselfāthough, quite humbly, he dismisses the praise. ā[The initiative] hasnāt seemed to be disruptive yet, but I think weāve gotten people coming on board who have mutual concerns and a lot of support [for the cause].ā He pauses a beat, and seems to be almost speaking to himself when he says, āThe only thing is that weāve got to get it right.ā
Economically, the country is in severe need of agro-reforestation but, luckily, Penn is up for the challenge. Heās got big plans for Haitiāincluding a complete restructure of the countryās landscape to enhance its value as an ecotourism destination. That said, he realizes that they need to keep it simple to start with. āYou canāt forget to have exportable produce, but you have to have good roads first because, if you donāt, the produce is going to get bruised all the way to the market. There are a lot of pieces to this puzzle and itās going to take a lot of investment.ā He adds, āIf Iām talking to the people of the United States of America, [Iād say that] we have made a tremendous investment and we have to finish it. Itās a call to humanity, itās a call on behalf of our neighbor, to pick a country up out of poverty and put it [in a position to feel] pride. Thatās the call to action.ā
REBELING AGAINST ADVICE + PARTY PLANNING FOR A CAUSE
The best advice Sean Penn could offer, for the record, isnāt the same thing as the best advice heās ever been givenāadvice which, in his true contrary fashion, also happens to be the best advice he didnāt take.
ā[Someone told me,] āDonāt stay more than three months in a disaster zone without taking a couple of weeks off.ā But, no, Penn didnāt take a few weeks off, or even just stay for a few monthsāhe stayed for nineā¦ monthsā¦ straight. āI made the mistake of not taking that advice,ā he admits with a rueful smile. āI think I went a little kooky.ā
Just chalk it up to part of his charm. However, by living in Haiti for so long, he got to know the peopleāthe rich and the poor, the women and men, the rural and urban dwellers. He educated himself, he listened, and he learned. ā[Once you] start to get a feel for the place, [you] know youāll never really know the place,ā he shares. ā[You] know that youāre going to have to use your best instinct[s] about who to trust, who to learn from, who to question, and who to challenge and be challenged by. Itās a long process, but weāve had a lot of success.ā
Part of the reason for that success is that he was able to let go, to delegate, to cede control. āAt a certain point, I stopped calling the shots,ā he explains. āI had shot-callers that were living the life, that were Haitian. Like anything else, I had to develop good relationships and trust them.ā
Trust isnāt something Penn gives easily or quickly, but something he chooses pragmatically, at least in his business dealings. As the evidence of Haiti Takes Root should convey, heās a ābig pictureā kind of guy. He doesnāt have time to sweat the small stuff; he needed to build a team on the ground who cared.
āI always joke around because here I have a lot of young volunteers who are definitely what youād call humanitarians. The daily compassion, weeping at deaths of everybody who had died; I just had no time to do that.ā
This doesnāt mean Penn is unfeeling, or cold, or whatever else you would want to call him: his passion for Haiti and its people is genuine. In fact, he cares so much that he almost seems to go into another zone when talking about his work there. The intensity you often see him portray onscreen is 100 percent real. āIām a facilitator, so Iām not inclined to get to know everybody intimately,ā he admits, adding, āI wanted to have a T-shirt that said, āTell it to the humanitarian.ā
The smirk with which he delivers this piece of bluster is pure Penn. True, he might not always be warm and fuzzy, but thereās no disputing the fact that this guy is the very embodiment of a philanthropist. In fact, the Oxford English Dictionary describes a humanitarian as āa person who seeks to promote human welfare.ā Sorry, Seany, but you fit the bill.
Seriously though, one of his best ābig pictureā ideas is to bring people together with music. Each year, guests know theyāre in for some world-class entertainment at J/P HROās annual charity gala, Help Haiti Home. This is in addition to the ethereally-decorated room, a gourmet dinner, star-studded crowd with wall-to-wall celebrities such as Johnny Depp, Chris Hemsworth and Gwyneth Paltrow and big-name philanthropists like Marc Benioff and Sean Parker, as well as the be-all, end-all of auctions with items up for grabs from masters like Banksy and Jeff Koons.
Some might say that Penn has the cushiest gig while putting together the gala: his sole involvement is being the guy who picks the band. And, when youāre friends with some of the biggest icons in entertainment, thatāsĀ not hardāwhich is why everyone from Coldplayās Chris Martin and the Red Hot Chili Peppers to U2 and even ex-wife Madonna has performed. Never mind that his event competes with all the hoopla of Golden Globes weekāhe has built it, and Pennās disciples do come.
While he canāt reveal who this yearās entertainment will be, he informs us that the galaāwhich will take place on January 7āhas been renamed Haiti Rising, mostly because Haiti is figuratively in a different place now. Since its relocations mandate has been achieved and the country is looking towards its next chapter, the galaās name is meant to convey its progress.
Strategically, its moniker will also reflect the still-pressing need for financial contributions. Its word tense is telling, after all: it is a country on the rise, but it has not yet peaked.
āThe needs are different, the resourcesāor lack of thereofāare different,ā Penn says. āPeople have to understand that, [although Haiti faded from] the headlines, thereās not big government grantsĀ going out there. You might have gotten a lot of your sectors financed on a multi-million dollar grant in the first couple of years after the earthquake, but itās almost entirely dried up. Everything we do is from private donations at this stage.ā
Those donations are in dire need this year, and the reason isnāt one that Penn is pleased about. āThereās been a change and it isnāt good news,ā he notes grimly. āIāve said every year at the event, āCome. Come see Haiti.ā I knew that I could say that and people would be safeā¦ but I canāt say that this year.
āWeāve had many foreigners killed, shot and kidnapped,ā he continues quietly. āThereās a lot of political instability. Now, that doesnāt mean you canāt be safe again in Haiti. Of course I feel safe there. But, at large, I would not be someone to recommend it right now, and thatās a terrible thing.ā
Heās confident that things will improve but, again, it will take timeā¦ and finances. āItās going to change, itās going to be OK, but itās not off the hook,ā he notes, adding that he and his team are hell-bent on raising funds for Haiti.
āWeāre saying, āLook. Hereās the value of what weāve been doing, and hereās the color of change in that now. Hereās what we need now thatās different [from our former needs]. Hereās what we want to celebrate thatās different. I just told you a piece of bad news, but itās not all bad.āā
His goal is to make everyone see the good in his cause, and his star-studded, sold-out event attended by some of the richest and most famous people in the world is the perfect platform. āI know how much we need to raise every year and [if we donāt raise it], people are going to pay a huge price in Haiti. I feel a lot of pressure, but, knock wood, weāll continue to have great support.ā
If he had one gripe itās that, in his opinion, the same ten people are the ones giving over and over again. Sure, in 2015 and 2016, Help Haiti Home raised $6 million and $7 million, respectively, but it baffles Penn that, among a crowd that has so much, most seem to give so little.
āThere are a few extraordinary people that come, but then you have a room that is full mostly of people that are not giving anything. They eat, stargaze and watch the band but, honestly, I donāt think thereās a person in that room that canāt afford $25. I always wonder about that.ā
HAITI IS THE FOCUS, BUT HOLLYWOOD IS STILL THEREĀ
Throughout his career, Penn has been called many thingsānot all of which were positive. But, then, this is Hollywood in the digital age. Everyoneās a critic.
If weāre talking about the good stuffāand we areāthereās a lot. His humanitarianism is the most obvious. In addition to his work with Haiti, he was fully hands-on in the relief effort post-Hurricane Katrina. Heās received several substantial honors, including being named Ambassador at Large for Haiti in 2012 and being presented with the 2012 Peace Summit Award at the 12th World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates.
But Penn, a longtime activist and promoter of civil rights, has always been one to stand up for his beliefs. In 2002, he penned a prescient open letter, published inĀ The Washington PostĀ andĀ TheĀ New York Times, to President George W. Bush against the planned invasion of Iraq. Furthermore, he traveled to Baghdad and Tehran in 2002 and 2003 to report for theĀ San Francisco Chronicle.Ā He has interviewed Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Cubaās President Raul Castro forĀ The Nation, the latter of which was Castroās first-ever interview with a foreign journalist. In 2013, Penn also played a vital role in getting wrongfully imprisoned American entrepreneur Jacob Ostreicher released from a Bolivian prison, for which he was honored by the Aleph Institute in 2015. Plus, no one can forget his most recent effort, a secret interview forĀ Rolling StoneĀ with Mexican drug lord Joaquin āEl Chapoā Guzman.
This is a guy you can peel like an onion, layer after layer after layer. And, yes, heās still the Hollywood iconāa five-time Academy Award-nominated actor, taking home the coveted Best Actor trophies forĀ Clint EastwoodāsĀ Mystic RiverĀ in 2004 and Gus Van SantāsĀ MilkĀ in 2009, who has also directed five feature films, including the critically-acclaimedĀ Into the Wild, Indian RunnerĀ andĀ The Pledge. (And those are just the highlights; it would actually take pages to cover all that Penn has done since he began his career with the 1981 film,Ā Taps.) This fall, he begins shootingĀ The Professor and the Madman,Ā directed by Farhad Safiniaāanother unprecedented first, given that this film allows him to star alongside Mel Gibson. The two have been talking about doing the film, which is based on Simon Winchesterās 1998 book of the same name, for 12 years. Penn will play āMadmanā Dr. W.C. Minor in this true story of the creation of the Oxford English Dictionary, a man who submitted more than 10,000 entries to the project as an inmate at an asylum for the criminally insane to Gibsonās OED founder, Professor James Murray.
Though thereās been a lot of hype and discussion about the project, Penn is keeping mum. āWe just didnāt [work together before],ā he says. āI donāt know why. [But I took the role because] itās a great project, I get to work with Mel and itās a beautifully written script.ā
Heās far more vocal on his thoughts regarding the upcoming presidential election, expressing his preference to Stephen Colbert onĀ The Late Show: āEither you can [ā¦] go out and vote in a very big way for someone like Hillary Clintonāwho you can then challenge and support, which is the only way that a president can have any successāand you stick it out for four years,ā he says, āOr we can just masturbate our way into hell with a guy who looks like the only blonde magician.ā
While his opinionated vote isnāt surprising, Penn is a man whose overall actions still are. He uncharacteristically showed up to present at the pop-centric iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas this September, then popped up on several talk shows out of the blue to tout a free audiobook,Ā Bob Honey Who Just Do Stuff,Ā by a mysterious author named Pappy Pariahāwho may or may not be Penn himself in disguise. The point is, he might be a humanitarian and award-winning actor, but heās still a rebel and all-around badass who does exactly what he wants for reasons that, though they might not make sense to others, always, always have a purpose for Penn.
But has one facet of his personality hurt another? Has his ārebel without a causeā persona of the past harmed the actual present-day rebelĀ withĀ one? Penn doesnāt know and, quite frankly, he doesnāt care. āI donāt read anything about myself in current tense, but Iām aware of stuff,ā he admits. āIām aware of extremes. Iām always surprised by anything very positive or anything very negative.
āI can imagine, based on things Iāve heard about myself, that nobody would show up at [my] damn event because of my involvement, you know?ā he continues. āI can imagine that and, yet, people come out. I put one foot in front of the other, and it is what it is.ā
While the juryās still out on whether public perception has helped or hurt him, his celebrity status has only benefitted his cause. Whatās more, he feels itās a civic duty to affect change if you have the platform to stand on. āIf youāre in the acting or film business, where your major job is to share things, then you ought not to be [in the business] if you donāt,ā he says.
Still, truth be told, he doesnāt really dig the āphilanthropistā labelāor any label, for that matter. āItās all just one thing,ā he says. āItās every day, putting your feet in your pants. Itās acting and working in Haiti. It all feels like, for me, the same job. Itās a really lucky life and a really fortunate one, but itās all just life to me.ā