When Victoria Rowell’s racial discrimination case against Sony, CBS and The Young and the Restless producers was dismissed in November 2015, the judge asked for an amendment if she wanted to continue on with the lawsuit. He asked her to define a specific role she was not hired for based on her race.
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Many fans questioned why she was moving forward with the case after months in court. While it may be hard for some fans to understand, Saturday’s episode of Oprah: Where Are They Now?gave some incredible insight as to where she is coming from with this lawsuit.
“Here in Hollywood, I have long championed diversity, not only for African-Americans, but for all minorities, for gender bias, etc.” Rowell said in the interview.
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Her lawsuit comes at a time when Hollywood is catching up on diversity, gender and sexual identity in films — both in front of and behind the camera.
Rowell believes the time is now to keep pushing for that change.
“I believe that I will prevail in an ongoing lawsuit in federal court,” she explained. “I want to see hiring practice changes. I want to see the inclusion of more stories that show full breadth and depth of our stories across the board.”
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Her explanation holds a lot of weight in the shift that many are trying to push for in the entertainment industry. Minorities, women and the LGBT community are not as equally represented as white males across all mediums. While television has progressed faster than film, something still needs to be done.
On Sunday, Rowell took to Twitter to explain her Y&R case even further.
It looks like her commitment to the cause is showing her fans how strong her beliefs are that things need to change. The overall response to her tweets was positive, and it proved that her message is impactful.
Rowell also proved she wasn’t in this for herself. She is looking at generations beyond her own.
“Mentoring is so important. The higher you go in your area of expertise, the narrower the communication becomes. It has really been my North Star, those friendships, those mentors I’ve been able to go to seek advice.”
It hasn’t been an easy journey for Rowell, but she continues to soldier on with each obstacle. If she’s successful with this lawsuit, the path might be smoother for the actors following in her footsteps.
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