This year’s Academy Awards was filled to the brim with activism. The Oscars responded to criticism by the #OscarsSoWhite campaign by amping up their social activism in several big ways. Lady Gaga gave a heartbreaking tribute to survivors of sexual assault with her performance of “Till It Happens to You.” Leonardo DiCaprio accepted his long-awaited Oscar with a moving speech about climate change.
The Academy Awards’ response to #OscarsSoWhite was flawed. While individual actors and performers at the Oscars did engage in some activism, the Academy itself did nothing to acknowledge their own social problems. Chris Rock, the night’s host, made a few self-depricating and incredibly uncomfortable jokes. Stacey Dash, who had previously pushed for the abolishment of Black History Month, contributed to the awkward dynamic of the show. Despite the serious hiccups, the film community does seem to be doing something to acknowledge it’s lack of diversity. The Academy Awards are probably the most formal manifestation of the film world’s culture and ideology, so this year’s Oscars might be a dim glimmer of hope for an industry plagued by a lack of diversity and social awareness.
Activism at the Oscars is nothing new. While the Academy Awards have done very little to actually encourage the activism that often centers around them, individual celebrities frequently use the Oscars as a platform to spread awareness for important issues.
One of the most famous instances of Oscars activism was orchestrated by Marlon Brando and an Apache woman named Sacheen Littlefeather in 1973. When Brando won Best Actor for his work in The Godfather, Sacheen Littlefeather took to the stage, refused the award, and delivered a moving speech about the mistreatment of Native Americans in film and television. Her speech made waves in the film community, and gave hope to the struggling Native American community. Unfortunately, representation has not gotten much better for Native Americans since Sacheen Littlefeather made her speech, but because of her brave activism, Hollywood is much more aware of the breadth of its diversity problem. Sacheen Littlefeather’s speech started the slow-growing trend of Academy Awards’ activism that came to its apex this year.
At the 2015 Academy Awards, gender issues took center stage as a source of inequality in film. Patricia Arquette, when accepting the award for Boyhood, dedicated her award to mothers, openly criticizing the wage gap. Other Oscars winner like Julianne Moore, Graham Moore, and Dana Perry discussed mental health.
From 1973 to 2016, activism at the Oscars has been controversial, but important. The reality is that the celebrities that bring attention to important causes in their speeches are incredibly privileged. Many of them can’t fully understand the scope of the social issues they discuss. That being said, their privilege puts them in a place of prominence in our society and amplifies the effect of any activist actions they take. Their fame and privilege can be used for good to improve the film industry and the world as a whole. Hopefully the Academy will begin to listen to celebrities’ calls for increased equality and social awareness. Until then, Hollywood will have to rely on the individual activism of a few privileged stars.