If any of you watched or read about the Golden Globes, then you will know how successful "The Revenant" was. With the movie's success came Leonardo DiCaprio's acceptance speech for Best Actor in a Drama. During his speech, Leo discussed an important issue that is not talked about enough; Indigenous people's representation in the media. He spoke about how, in this day and age, it is extremely necessary for indigenous people's voices to be heard in the mass media, and that it is high time for their people to gain equal representation in Hollywood movies, especially in movies specifically written about them.

While what Leo said is true, his speech is problematic because throughout the entire film, "The Revenant" showed very few indigenous people who had speaking roles. Hollywood has a history of misrepresenting Native Americans in films, and much like Leo, other actors have made an effort to draw attention to this issue. One of the most famous incidents was when in 1972, Marlon Brando boycotted the Oscars and declined his award in order to protest the depictions of Native Americans in film, T.V. and the media.

The steps that Hollywood have taken since then never seem to actually show any true understanding of what representation means or how to correctly employ indigenous people's experiences; other than through the white male perspective. Indigenous people have a bigger story line than hunting and being killed by white people, but it seems impossible for Hollywood to allow any person of color to depict a story that is not solely focused on their culture, race or sexuality.

While these are important narratives to tell, it is even more important to provide proper representation for these people.They need narratives that they, themselves can relate to, and be happy to share with the world. They need stories to be told from their perspective, and not someone else's.

We continue to take strides towards equality and equal representation in the media, but there are still many changes that need to be made in the system that claims to offer equal opportunity for all. Similar struggles are faced by many other marginalized groups of people in the U.S., like for instance transgender women, who's narratives continue to be told by cis-gendered males dressed in drag. If Hollywood and the media expect the general public to watch and support their films then it is only appropriate for them to create films that actually feature more than just a fraction of our population's demographic.

To watch Leonardo DiCaprio's speech:

Marlon Brando's Oscar declination: