Justin Bieber is at the center of more controversy. This time it's for writing a message that Anne Frank would have hopefully been a fan of his. INSIDE EDITION has the story.
Would you believe that Justin Bieber is in hot water over something he wrote about Anne Frank?
That's right. The teen idol visited the house of the beloved Holocaust victim in Amsterdam and wrote this self-serving message in the guest book: "Truly inspiring to be able to come here. Anne was a great girl. Hopefully she would have been a Belieber."
A photo of Bieber at the museum apparently portrays him making gang gestures with his hands.
Good Morning America said, "The pop superstar's shocking message left for Anne Frank at her museum!"
This New York Daily News headline sums up the controversy: “What the Heil?”
As everyone knows, Anne Frank is the author of an immortal diary chronicling the two years she and her family spent hiding from the Nazis. She died in a concentration camp when she was just 15.
The capture of her family was portrayed in the 1959 Academy Award® winning film, The Diary of Anne Frank.
It ended with Anne's message of hope in the bleakest of times.
In the film, Anne says, "In spite of everything, I still believe people are good at heart."
Justin Bieber's seemingly flip message about Anne Frank being a "belieber" if she were around today has people crying foul on the Anne Frank house Facebook page.
"She would have been a what? That little idiot is way too full of himself. She's an important historical figure so show some respect", said one person.
"Unbelievable. Shows his complete lack of maturity", said another.
Opinions were mixed on The View, with Brooke Shields giving Bieber a big thumbs-down.
Shields said, "I don't think he's surrounded by people helping him be smart about what he's representing."
Shields said, "I think it’s appalling!"
Whoopi Goldberg said, "I do not."
Barbara Walters said, "I do not either."
Ironically, museum officials were pleased by Bieber's visit, saying:
"He was very interested in the story of Anne Frank and stayed for over an hour. We hope that his visit will inspire his fans to learn more about her life and hopefully read the diary."
Abraham Foxman, national director of the anti-defamation league, says he wasn't disturbed by Bieber's "belieber" comment.
Foxman said, “Why not focus on the fact that this young man went to visit the Anne Frank house. That’s what’s important.”
Ironically, the Bieber controversy comes as a new ADL ad shows what major figures from history might have accomplished had they lived.
It shows what Anne Frank might have looked like in old age, with an imaginary headline, "Anne Frank wins Nobel Prize for her twelfth novel."
Another wishful headline hails 84-year-old Martin Luther King as a champion of immigration reform.
Recent photos of Justin Bieber show him working out in a gym. In the end, perhaps his self-serving words will call attention to a young girl gone too soon.
