Dear Critics, Lindsay Lohan's Career Is Not Over Yet

By Amber James Posted Jan 20th 2010 12:54PM

In December, Lindsay Lohan traveled across India to film a BBC documentary to raise awareness and find a solution to stop child trafficking. Although we think her trip was done out of the the kindness in her heart, the public seemed to think it was simply a PR stunt to tweak her "party girl" image. Either way, it was obvious that even her humanitarian efforts failed to positively change her career ... even a little bit.

We aren't denying that she's had some low points (from her D.U.I. arrest to rehab), but she doesn't deserve to be turned into a Hollywood scapegoat. No one is perfect. PopEater is a firm believer in second chances and predicts Lohan will pull it together, and people will start taking her seriously. See why we are Team Lohan ... after the jump.

Imagine being 23 and having your every move critiqued. Honestly, if paparazzi followed most 20-somethings, they would probably make Lohan look like a saint. (There's a reason why college franchises like 'Animal House' and 'Van Wilder' are so popular -- most people can relate to it.) Yet the world is so fixated on her missteps that they refuse to forgive and move on. What are we waiting for?

Lohan optimistically tweeted on January 2 that she wouldn't let people bring her down this year. "My new years resolution is to stop letting the lucky few that have my heart try to constantly tear me down." She continued, "2010 is about moving forward, not backwards. Leaving the bad (people, habits, and negative energy behind) time to make changes-right!?!?"

But the backlash continued even after the BBC released a trailer of her documentary. Gossip blogs tore the clip apart: Lindsay Lohan Pretends To Care; Lindsay Lohan Does Good, Looks Awkward; Samaritan LiLo's Comic Relief Skit. The public was skeptical of her sincerity, even though she was trying to shine a light on a serious issue that desperately needs more attention. What do you want from her? She never said she was going to change the world in one day.

Gawker's Azaria Jagger, who also mocked the clip, tells PopEater, "What bothers most people is that she refuses to give up even an inch of the spotlight, even during her trip to India... There were those self-congratulatory tweets quantifying how many kids she had saved (and the BBC's subsequent retraction on her behalf) and now this video clip has about one second of screen time that doesn't include LiLo's face."

Perhaps she rushed into fixing her image and wasn't out of the spotlight long enough. It got to the point where her public and private persona got blurred. People were seeing her as "Lindsay Lohan" and associating her too much with the scandals and gossip and not giving her the opportunity to be accepted as a real person with feelings.

Her public perception started to go downhill during the summer of 2007 when she was arrested twice for driving under the influence -- once in May and once in July. Aside from driving drunk, police involved in the July arrest also found cocaine in Lohan's pocket. Weeks later, Lohan checked herself into Cirque Lodge Treatment Center, a high-class rehabilitation center frequented by many stars. It was her second rehab stint, having gone once before in January of 2007.

No one can deny the talent she had in 'The Parent Trap' and 'Mean Girls,' but no one could get past her old hard-partying ways. I'm not saying her recent films like 'Herbie Fully Loaded,' 'I Know Who Killed Me' and 'Labor Pains' (that went straight to cable) were blockbusters, but she was pretty much blamed for bringing each film to the ground. Now that's a lot of pressure. Could you perform at your best if everyone used you like a punching bag?

Even though she's made a few mistakes, give her a break. She's human. Perhaps in the future, she needs to be more picky with her roles and also not try to juggle so many projects at once. I mean come on -- she's tackled movies, TV, music, fashion, spray tanning... the list could just keep going.

"The best thing to do is for her to step away from it from a bit, and come back with a spectacular performance that wows everyone and reminds us all of that raw talent she was born with," J-14 Magazine's Editor-In-Chief Rachel Chang tells PopEater.

Lohan can make a comeback and start making headlines for her acting and not her acting out. Later this year, Lohan will star in Robert Rodriguez's 'Machete' -- which could mark the beginning of a new decade for Lohan. Hey, if the world can forgive Angelina Jolie for wearing a vial of Billy Bob Thornton's blood around her neck, they can definitely move past Lohan's transgressions and accept her as a serious actress and entrepreneur.

Here's to you, Lindsay. Now show us what you've got.

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Lindsay Lohan Snapshots

Lindsay Lohan attends the InStyle and Warner Bros. 67th Annual Golden Globes post-party on January 17, 2010 in Beverly Hills, California. More Lindsay Lohan photos >>

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