The Academy Awards, or "Oscars," is an annual American award ceremony honoring cinematic achievements in the film industry. On May 16, 1929, the Academy Awards was started in the ballroom of the Roosevelt Hotel in Hollywood, California.
Since the year 1929 only 66 African American actors and actresses have been nominated for Academy Awards. In 1939 Hattie McDaniel became the first African American to win an Academy Award as best supporting actress, for her role as Mammy in "Gone With the Wind." Over the years, many African American and Latino actors and actresses have fallen victim to the too much melanin epidemic. For many years now, the greatest of entertainers have frequently been looked over for some of the greatest roles ever performed in the cinematic world. Are we still waiting to be accepted in the entertainment world?
Since the start of the Academy Awards only 15 of the 66 nominees have won Oscars. The decision to nominate someone is solely in the hands of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). We are currently facing a problem of Academy nominations including the minority actors and actresses. With many minorities questioning why entertainers of color were omitted from the nominee list, the world is starting to look into the nominations themselves.
Box office hits such as "Straight Out of Compton," "Concussion" and "Creed" were just a few of the films that were not included on the list of an Academy Award nomination. As media moguls began to notice the unfair treatment of minority entertainers they begin to speak on the problem. Famous film director Spike Lee spoke out on twitter about the nominations, “We cannot support it and mean no disrespect to my friends, host Chris Rock and Producer Reggie Hudlin, President Isaacs and the Academy."
But, how is it possible for the 2nd consecutive year all 20 contenders under the actor category are white? And let’s not even get into the other branches. Forty white actors in two years and no flava at all. We can’t act?! WTF!! Spike also stated, “Dr. King said 'There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular but he must take it because conscience tells him it’s right.'"
I believe that when the doors are shut in that room and those business executives sit down to discuss the nominations, they also take into consideration the color of that persons skin. We as African Americans must take a stand and let people know we will not allow you to omit us and exclude us from something we have worked hard for.
Once Hattie McDaniel accepted that Academy Award in 1939 she set the pace for other African American entertainers. The Board should realize that one thing about the African American culture is that we will always find a way around everything that we are denied. Our people must not back down and allow others to just throw our hard work and dedication to the side. When those doors are closed, what is the conversation like ?
With so many people tuned in to the mistreatment of our black entertainers many have taken their opinions to social media. Famed journalist Roland Martin encourages the boycott of the oscars, “With #OscarSoWhite, every major Black Hollywood star should be at the @NAACPImageAward as a major statement and show of support for winners!” Why do we keep showing up to these award shows that not only exclude us from the winner circle, but they also exclude us from the nomination list as well.
It is encouraged that every minority entertainer boycott the Academy Award and attend the NAACP Image Award. When will we see a diverse list of nominees during the award? When will the Board finally see that African American entertainers are not going away without a fight? If Hollywood only listened to the complaints of the minority actors and actresses #OSCARSOWHITE would not exist in the world of social media.
