Variety seeks to shame Hollywood on lack of diversity

The latest Hollywood star to weigh in on the Oscars racism row is actress Ellen Page, who has urged for there to be more diversity when casting movies and television shows. “You can not win an Emmy for roles that are simply not there”.

Countless celebrities have announced their shame in the academy since the nominations were released.

While Spike Lee, Tyrese, Snoop Dogg and 50 Cent have urged a boycott, rapper/actor Ice Cube appeared on Graham Norton last week where he called the boycott “ridiculous”. 2012 Best Supporting actress Oscar victor Lupita Nyong’o said the awards should be a “diverse reflection of the best of what our art has to offer today”.

Of course, lack of diversity is a problem here too.

It is quite possible that the lack of diversity among the nominees is less the fault of the Academy and more so a result of a majority of high quality roles being given to primarily white actors. Both Hudson and Issacs say the changes, while accelerated by the outrage over the all-white acting nominations, date well beyond the recent cries for diversity. The critically acclaimed “Straight Outta Compton” featured standout acting performances (O’Shea Jackson Jr.) and strong direction (F. Gary Gray), each from a person of color. “Because unless you have the best artists as members, unless you have the best artists voting on the Academy Awards, you don’t have a real reflection of the best of our film culture”.

“If the studios, the people who make the movies, can’t see their way to embrace African-American artists or stories that come from the African-American experience, I fail to see how white members like me are the problem”, said Weisman.

Some critics felt that Elba’s portrayal of a rebel military commander leading a group of child soldiers warranted his first Oscar nomination. The lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community has gained more ground in Hollywood over the past decade than black folk have covered in 50 years. One went to an Asian actress.

He acknowledged that while has been fortunate to land significant roles, he also said, “My experience has been that access to better roles is not something we can expect – because of our accent, or looks or just for being Latino”, Blades wrote.

“Davis” charge brings to light a good point about the people behind the camera – the directors, producers and screenwriters.

It’s interesting that since 2000 the number of black actors winning Oscars has been fairly in line with the size of America’s overall black population, a figure generally given at around 13 percent of the population. It’s in cycles of every 10 years. Perhaps most egregiously, Kathryn Bigelow was the only woman nominated for best director in that timespan for “The Hurt Locker” in 2009.

“I understand your need to respond to the criticism the Academy has recently received about the lack of diversity among the Oscar nominees”.

To the institution’s credit, the academy pledged to double the number of female and minority members by 2020. According to the Los Angelos Times, the Academy’s goal to increase nonwhite membership to 14 percent is still well below the nation’s 38 percent. Additionally, members will have an opportunity to appeal their situation. Meanwhile, Oscar nominee Charlotte Rampling has walked back her controversial comments that this year’s Oscar boycott is “racist to white people”.

At the most basic level, the people who are doing the casting, the writing and forming the underbelly of the movie industry are mostly white.