Supermodel becomes Western Shoshone ally in campaign

[NVMojo]

ELKO, Nev. - Gold and diamonds are not necessarily a girl's best friend, even for supermodels.

British supermodel Lily Cole refused to work for a diamond mining company accused of displacing Bushmen in the Kalahari of Botswana. She became an ally of Western Shoshone and environmentalists in the ongoing struggle to halt gold and diamond mining, which displaces indigenous peoples worldwide and creates excessive amounts of mining waste and toxins.

Cole was the face of De Beers, but refused to work for the company after learning that Bushmen were evicted to make way for future diamond mining in Botswana.

Cole's action follows the efforts of human rights organizations, including Survival International, which describes its efforts as ''helping tribal peoples defend their lives, protect their lands and determine their own futures.''

Lily said, ''I was unaware of these matters when I was booked for the shoot.''

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http://www.indiancountry.com/content.cfm?id=1096411381

[roguevalley]

1. you did good, lily.

[ochazuke]

2. Glad we have a beautiful woman on our side.

I hope minerals become the new fur: once fashionable, but then not (once people find out what happens before they can be worn)

[don954]

4. i dont even know why people give diamonds

they are incredibly common, only 2nd to quartz, the are only expensive due to the fact they have been artificially inflated by DeBeers. There are lots of fantasticly artistic rings out there without diamonds..

[Hello_Kitty]

3. Right on Lily! n/t

[NVMojo]

5. Exiles of the Kalahari

News: Forcibly resettled by a Botswanan government eager to clear the way for diamond mining, the Bushmen are battling to regain their ancestral homeland.

http://www.motherjones.com/news/dispatch/2005/01/01_800.html