A shockingly all-white group of actors and actresses were nominated for the 88th Academy Awards recently. Social media is in uproar and many well-established actors and actresses have allegedly announced that they will be boycotting this year, including George Clooney, Will Smith, Spike Lee, and Jada Pinkett Smith.
The only person of color who will potentially see the spotlight of the Oscars' stage on February 28 will be host, Chris Rock. Rock, 50, previously a member of the "Saturday Night Live" cast and responsible for the creation of television show "Everybody Hates Chris," appears to be under a great deal of pressure to boycott the Oscars himself.
However, if he did choose to host (and rumor has it that he has), Rock would have an excellent opportunity to voice his opinions--and the opinions of many other A-list actors--on the matter, which could potentially bring a positive change to this year's ceremony. As host, he would be impossible to ignore and millions of viewers would be tuned in, which could be exactly the kind of eye-opener that our society so desperately needs.
Currently trending on Twitter is the hashtag "#OscarSoWhite." Last year's Oscar nominations also received harsh criticism for the same reason, which is where we first saw the hashtag, "#OscarSoWhite." In addition to using "#OscarSoWhite," people have introduced "#OscarStillSoWhite," highlighting the fact that this is the second time that this has happened. For the second year in a row, we will be seeing all-white faces taking the stage (with the exception of Chris Rock).
The only time black actors are nominated for an Oscar is when they're cast as slaves #OscarSoWhite
— Slay (@slaybabes) January 14, 2016
The Oscars just seem like standardized test at this point. Culturally biased and inherently racist. #OscarSoWhite— #BernedOut (@rodimusprime) January 14, 2016
Expecting whiteout conditions in Chicago this weekend, but I already experienced it watching the Oscar nominations. #OscarSoWhite
— Soong-Chan Rah (@profrah) January 14, 2016Many people have defended the all-white nominations by arguing that no minorities were "good enough" to earn an Oscar this year and that the white actors were simply better. This is a horrifying example of the white supremacy that continues to be a part of our society and that we often choose to ignore.
Thankfully, the uproar that has resulted from this year's Oscar nominations has not gone unnoticed. After an emergency meeting, the Academy has announced that they will be making serious changes, promising to "double the number of women and diverse members of the Academy by 2020." We can only hope that the Academy holds true to these promises. The president of the Academy, Cheryl Boone Isaac, assures that, "The Academy is going to lead and not wait for the industry to catch up."
