For decades, the most prestigious and elite members of Hollywood have gathered at the Dolby Theatre to honor the talent of the greatest actors and actresses in the industry. This event is none other than the Academy Awards, otherwise known as the Oscars. Despite the undeniable presence of African-American talent in the media, the Oscars proves to serve only the white and wealthy.
On Thursday, January 14, the Academy released the extensive list of 2016 Oscar nominees, all of whom were white for the second year in a row.
Actress Jada Pinkett Smith was the first of Black Hollywood to express her outrage and suggested that African-Americans boycott the Oscars altogether. The boycott would include African-American celebrities not attending the Oscars, as well as encouraging African-American community not watch the event. In a video posted to Facebook, Smith boldly stated, “We’re not begging you anymore. You’re irrelevant to us…we must stand in our power.”
Shortly following Smith’s call for action, rap icon Snoop Dogg released a video in full support of an Oscar boycott. Snoop even suggested a step away from the Grammy’s, an award show that honors the talent of musical artists in Hollywood.
“All these great movies and all this great [stuff] you keep stealing from us,” Snoop said in his video.
As the 2016 Oscars controversy continued to gain more exposure, the hash tag #OscarsSoWhite became a social media sensation. Other African-American actors and actresses quickly jumped on the bandwagon in total support of the boycott, such as Lupita Nyong’o and Spike Lee.
“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,” said Lee in a lengthly Facebook post, “People, the truth is we [aren’t] in those rooms and until minorities are, the Oscar nominees will remain lily white.”
Will Smith is the latest actor to express his disappointment in the Oscars’ lack of diversity. In an interview with ABC News, Smith stated, “We’re going in the wrong direction.”
Despite the increasing number of African-Americans joining forces to combat the Oscars’ disrespect towards the black community, actress Stacey Dash came forth with a completely different opinion.
In an interview with Fox News, Dash argued that the Oscars boycott is a waste of time.
“We have to make up our minds. Either we want to have segregation or integration, and if we don’t want segregation, then we have to get rid of channels like BET and the BET Awards…where you’re only awarded if you’re black,” Dash said.
Social media users were quick to jump on Dash for her comments, which many took offensively.
Never before have so many African-Americans in Hollywood stood up against the persistence of racism and discrimination in the media. This is a crucial period of time for the black community to evaluate where it stands in society and how to combat the forces who seek to destroy it.