Academy Awards D-list multicultural talents
The recent outcry of the lack of diversity in the Academy Awards is nothing new and seems like a continuation of the blackout of multicultural talents in TV, film and the media.
Hollywood heavyweight Spike Lee says that he will boycott this year’s Oscar awards because of a continued lack of racial diversity in the list of nominees.
By Tuesday, the prominent filmmaker and director, along with actor Jada Pinkett-Smith, had announced they would not be attending the ceremony on February 28 to protest about the lack of recognition of black actors and others from minority backgrounds.
All 20 Oscar nominations for acting awards are white – for the second year in a row.
The boycott forced Academy President Cheryl Boone to promise a review of “our membership recruitment in order to bring about much-needed diversity in our 2016 class and beyond”.
“As I see it, the Academy Awards is not where the ‘real’ battle is. It’s in the executive office of the Hollywood studios and TV and cable networks. This is where the gate keepers decide what gets made and what gets jettisoned to ‘turnaround’ or scrap heap. This is what’s important.
“People, the truth is we ain’t in those rooms and until minorities are, the Oscar nominees will remain lily-white.”
