China Top the List of Countries Banning Celebrities

Brad Pitt, BANNED FROM China.

Courtesy of Wenn.com via Canoe.ca comes this list of celebrities who have been banned from certain countries and why. China leads the list door-slammers.

Brad Pitt was banned from China because of the actor’s starring role in “7 Years in Tibet” upset Chinese officials for a positive portrayal of the Dalai Lama.

Director Martin Scorsese was banned from China after directing the film “Kundun,” based on the teachings of the Dalai Lama.

Actor Harrison Ford was banned from China after testifying at the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee in support of an independent Tibet.

Actor Richard Gere was banned from China. You guessed it. He is a devout Buddhist and supporter of the Dalai Lama and Tibetan independence.

Paris Hilton was banned from Japan two days after pleading guilty to cocaine possession.
Rocker Ozzy Osbourne was banned from — OK, it’s not a country — San Antonio, Texas, after he was caught urinating on a memorial cross close to the Alamo.

Yusuf Islam (the folk singer formerly known as Cat Stevens) was denied entry into the United States in 2004 after his name appeared on a no-fly list. He has since been allowed in for concerts.

Akon was banned from Sri Lanka because the rapper angered people in the predominantly Buddhist country with his “Sexy Chick” video, which featured scantily clad women dancing near a statue of Buddha.

Actor Alec Baldwin was banned from the Philippines after making a joke about ordering a Filipina mail-order bride on “Late Night With David Letterman” in 2009.

Rocker Bob Dylan was banned from China, where he is seen as a scary counterculture icon who will only make trouble.

Chris Brown was banned from the United Kingdom after his 2009 felony assault on Rihanna.

Singer Boy George was banned from the United States after pleading guilty to falsely imprisoning a male escort.

Homemaking guru Martha Stewart was banned from the United Kingdom after her 2004 U.S. conviction for obstructing justice.

Singer Amy Winehouse was banned from the United States over drug and assault arrests in her native England.

Gary Glitter was banned from everywhere because the British government won’t let the singer leave the country due to convictions for sex crimes against children in Vietnam.

The Beatles were banned from the Philippines because they embarrassed then dictator Ferdinand Marcos and his wife by declining an invitation to the presidential palace in 1966.

Rapper Snoop Dogg was banned from the United Kingdom in 2006 after smashing up a duty-free shop with members of his entourage.

Singer Miley Cyrus was banned from China because the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was upset by pictures the then-Disney star took posing with slanted eyes.

The Clash was banned from then East Germany after secret police deemed the band’s lyrics too inflammatory.

Singer Bjork was banned from China after dedicating her song “Declare Independence” to the Tibetan freedom movement .  (baltimoresun.com)