SOCIAL CLIMES / THE OSCARS : EL RESCATE : Refugee Services Win at Benefit

The Scene: El Rescate’s sixth annual Academy Awards benefit at the Mondrian. This event--the most politically correct destination on a night awash in political rectitude--raises money for services to Central American refugees.

Who Was There: The evening’s emcee Rae Dawn Chong, Tim Robbins, Susan Sarandon, Jackson Browne, Debbie Harry and Rodney Dangerfield.

Awards: A special human-rights award was presented to Browne, Robbins and Sarandon “on behalf of worldwide human rights.” Said best actress nominee Sarandon, “Certainly, if I would have to choose an award tonight, I would prefer this one.”

Entertainment: Music by toad the wet sprocket, John Trudell and Soul Vibrations. The evening’s highlight was a rendition of “Lives in the Balance” by Browne, David Crosby and Graham Nash.

Quoted: “My being an entertainer and a political activist are not two personas, they’re one,” Sarandon said. “I was a politically aware person before I had access to the media. I just feel that I have been so lucky in my life to have so much, and the least I can do is the dishes for the feast that has been put on my table.”