Jade Goody has finally passed away and it is sad. It is a huge loss for her immediate family and an even greater tragedy, for her young sons, that she died on Mothering Sunday.
What I still do not understand, is why her death warrants a tribute from the prime minister. Thousands of women die unnecessarily from this terrible disease every year and it seems wrong, that just because Jade managed to attract the attention of the press and its readers, she should be singled out for special attention from the PM.
Of course, she has been praised for raising awareness among young women about the necessity to be screened for signs of cervical cancer. That, though, was a by-product of the press fever over her dying days, for which her publicist negotiated huge sums to be put into trust for her children's future. It was not a selfless act, but a money making opportunity - albeit too late for her personally.
I do not blame Jade for making the most, financially at least, of her final days. I do, however, blame the ghoulish press and its readers for turning her death into a public event. As I have written in an earlier post, I consider it has removed the dignity from her dying days.
Which brings me back to the prime minister's tribute. If Jade Goody had not attracted so much attention and been the subject of special tribute editions of celebrity magazines, would Gordon Brown even have known who she was? I can only conclude his remarks are just a cynical attempt to attract votes by riding on the back of the massive wave of publicity, her demise has created.
Whatever his motives, I hope that Jade is now truly able to rest in peace and that the celebrity circus is finally able to leave town!
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