Maybe this is a popular trend among Hollywood and celebrities, like adopting children from foreign countries and doing the Angelina Jolie “leg show” on the red carpet, but what is their fascination with visiting communist countries?

Earlier this year, former NBA Star Dennis Rodman, known for doing outlandish things from dying his hair green and sporting a wedding dress to promote his autobiography, visited Kim Jong-un’s North Korea, a country who is currently beating the drums of a potential war. However, Rodman seemed to praise Kim Jong-un, calling him a “life long friend,” despite knowledge of human rights violations that have been occurring in the country since his grandfather, Kim Il-sung took power in 1948.

“Once you get to meet [Kim Jong-un] one-on-one, personally, he’s an alright guy,” Rodman said.

If that wasn’t odd enough, singer power couple Beyonce and Jay-Z just returned from a trip in Cuba, another communist country that the United States has severed relations with since Fidel Castro took over in 1976. The trip, although approved by the Treasury Department, has raised some questions among Cuban politicians who feel the trip was far from appropriate.

“To be completely unaware of your surroundings or the conditions? I hope Jay-Z and Beyoncé were not ignorant to this,” said Mauricio Claver-Carone, the co-founder and director for the U.S.-Cuba Democracy Political Action Committee, to POLITICO. “Their entire trip was manipulated by that government and that’s sad because there are people in Cuba that Beyoncé and Jay-Z ignored who dream of being like them but don’t have that opportunity.”

So while pictures of Dennis Rodman and Kim Jung-un, laughing while watching a basketball game and enjoying his new found “bromance” with the dictator of North Korea, and Beyonce and Jay-Z posing on the beach and enjoying their vacation in Cuba float around, the question is raised as to why they are there. Clearly, they were not there for diplomatic reasons, but for their own enjoyment. Not only are they an embarrassment to American ideals that support freedom and liberty by visiting countries that perform atrocities on their own people, but they also give a negative perception of the American people who idolize celebrities that are so selfish and ignorant to visit two of the most unfortunate countries in the world.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the Parkway School District.