Our society has come to rely on star power to deal with our most intractable problems. Whether it is sports legends creating awareness of cancer, musicians inspiring young children to excel in school or actors trying to eradicate poverty, there’s nothing quite like the golden glow of celebrity to bring attention to important social issues.
The newest superstar problem-solver is martial arts action movie star Steven Seagal, who was sworn in last week as a deputy of the sheriff’s office in Hudspeth County, Texas. The San Antonio Express-News reported that the “Above the Law” star called the department two months ago asking for the job.
Hudspeth County Sheriff Arvin West told the Express-News that after careful consideration to ensure this wasn’t some sort of publicity stunt, he approved the hiring of Seagal, a seventh-dan black belt in the art of Aikido and 20-year trained peace officer.
Seagal’s new official role carries the starting title of “deputy chief to the chief deputy.” I’m sure some will condemn his position as yet another contribution to the glamorous, if not always accurate, portrayal of the U.S.-Mexico border as a stretch of lawless badlands that, if secured, would be the answer to all our immigration-related woes. Others will denounce Seagal as a nativist because there are Internet pictures of him mugging with the infamous illegal-immigrant-hunting Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa County, Ariz.
Not me. No one knows if Seagal and the Hudspeth County Sheriff’s Office will end up developing a reality TV show or creating some other type of controversy, so for now we must give Mr. “Hard to Kill” the benefit of the doubt.
Since we routinely put our faith in celebrities’ ability to make us aware of and ease society’s ills, we should be thankful that a bona fide tough guy will be helping to secure America’s border. And who better than a movie star desperate enough for real solutions that he’s willing to roll up his own sleeves to call attention to the bizarre antics that surround our illegal immigration problem?
