Albinos Denounce Da Vinci Code
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
(SNN Los Angeles) While it claims to be a work of fiction when it comes to religion, "The Da Vinci Code" is not splitting snow white hairs on one issue: albinos are cold, dangerous people.
Michael McGowan, head of the National Organization for Albinism and Hypo pigmentation says "The Da Vinci Code" is just the "latest in a long string."
"The problem is there has been no balance. There are no realistic, sympathetic or heroic characters with albinism that you can find in movies or popular culture," says McGown from beneath his antiseptically cold eyebrows.
Actor Paul Bettany, says that he does not see Silas as evil, but a man damaged by his harsh upbringing. "He's an amalgamation of everything that sort of happened to him in his life. How his father treated him and the things he saw his father do to his mother." Bettany then went on to compare Albinos to monks, another group known for its bloodthirsty assassins.
However, Bettany's compassion is not enough to warm the icy heart of a passionless man like McGowan. "We understand that millions read it and when they go to the movie, they're going to want to see the albino monk-assassin," McGowan said. "It's the cumulative effect of having one evil albino character after another that was disturbing to me." If this reporter were Bettany, he'd be watching his back, expecting at any moment to experience the sudden stroke of emotionless death.
