Martin Sheen is a famous actor who has starred in “Apocalypse Now”, “Ghandi”, “Firestarter”, “JFK” and over hundred others; as well as television’s “The West Wing.” Martin Sheen is the father of Emilo Estevez and Charlie Sheen.
He is also a major civil and environmental rights activist who has been arrested 66 times for civil disobedience. Martin Sheen is actually famous for being the most arrested celebrity in Hollywood.
Here he is being arrested in 1997 during a United Farm Workers protest outside a strawberry packing plant in California. (1) (2)
Here’s Sheen and Daniel Kerrigan being arrested at a Martin Luther King Day protest in 1989. (3)
Martin Sheen and Dan Berrigan under arrest in 1986. (4)
Martin Sheen and son, Charlie, after a demonstration protesting nuclear weapons at the Riverside Research Institute in New York. (1987) (5)
While protesting nuclear weapons testing in the US, Sheen was arrested along with astronomer Carl Sagan. 1987. (6)
After another different arrest: “I love my country enough to risk its wrath to tell the truth,” said Sheen after entering his plea. (7)
“Actor Martin Sheen arrested during a nonviolent protest direct action at the main gate of Vandenberg Air Force Base, while participating in the International Day of Protest to stop the militarization of space, October 7, 2000.” (8)
In the 80’s, Malibu voted him in as the Honorary Mayor of Malibu. And what is awesome and hilarious, in his first act as mayor, Sheen promptly declared Malibu a ”nuclear-free zone, a sanctuary for aliens and the homeless and a protected environment for all life, wild and tame.” This royally pissed off a lot of rich people living there. (9)
The host of a nationally syndicated radio talk show immediately took him up on his offer and began organizing buses to bring the homeless to the wealthy beach community.
The Malibu Chamber of Commerce flipped out and wanted to kick Sheen out as mayor but they ultimately backed down. “Martin Sheen may remain honorary mayor of Malibu despite the impromptu welcome he gave the homeless, the Chamber of Commerce has decided.” (10)
This is the RV Martin Sheen, a sailboat operated by Sea Shepherd. The Sea Shepherd is an international nonprofit marine wildlife conservation group that Martin Sheen has been active with for decades. The Martin Sheen vessel’s first campaign was Operation Toxic Gulf in 2014 following the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill. (11)
In 1994 Sheen went out on a mission to stop a seal hunt with Captain Paul Watson, Sea Shepherd’s founder. Sheen said: “Captain Watson asked me to come up and join the effort to stop the seal hunt. I worked my way up to the Madeleine Islands [part of the Canadian province of Quebec] and a big storm came in and we were not able to get out onto the ice and the seal hunters rioted and they tried to kill him. They gave him a brutal beating in the hotel. There were about 200 of them and there were only a half dozen of us and we had to be rescued by the Mounties, literally.” (12)
Sea Shepherd does badass incredible work: https://seashepherd.org
Thank You Martin Sheen, for all the awesome stuff you do
sources:
1. https://www.eonline.com/photos/19598/stars-arrested-fighting-for-a-cause/723134
2. https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/jail-time-6-hollywood-actors-with-the-most-arrests.html/
3. https://www.flickr.com/photos/tamiment/3984193660
4. https://www.flickr.com/photos/jimforest/33077653591
5. http://vonne920.tripod.com/martin_sheen/activism.html
6. https://www.nytimes.com/1987/02/06/us/438-protesters-are-arrested-at-nevada-nuclear-test-site.html
7. https://www.upi.com/Archives/1986/11/18/Actor-Martin-Sheen-arrested-in-nuke-protest/2556532674000/
8. http://la.indymedia.org/news/2000/10/4020.php
9. https://www.nytimes.com/1989/05/26/us/malibu-journal-an-open-invitation-and-an-uproar.html
10. https://www.nytimes.com/1989/06/12/us/malibu-keeping-sheen-as-honorary-mayor.html
11. http://seashepherd.wikia.com/wiki/RV_Martin_Sheen