Sean Penn Slams "the Whole F--king World" for Abandoning Haiti

Actor-activist tells media at Cannes Film Festival fundraiser "the reason we have Haiti fatigue is because there was never a commitment in the first place"

By Rebecca Macatee May 18, 2012 4:00 PMTags
Sean PennKevan Brooks/AdMedia/Sipa USA

Sean Penn isn't a fan of slacktivists.

On Friday in Cannes, the actor-activist slammed the media for abandoning Haiti after the devastating earthquake in January 2010.

"It's not only celebrities who went for a day," Penn told reporters, as excerpted by TheWrap.com. "It's the whole f--king world. It's all of you."

"The reason we have Haiti fatigue is because there was never a commitment in the first place," he added.

Penn also called upon Barack Obama to meet with Haiti's newly elected president Michel Joseph Martelly. "It's time our elegant and formidable president stood side by side [with Martelly]," he said.

The actor was part of a news conference with Petra Nemcova and director Paul Haggis, all of whom work with nonprofit organizations in Haiti. The trio joined forces for a benefit for the country at the Cannes Film Festival.