More celebrities are speaking out every day against the lack of diversity at this year’s Oscars.
Lupita Nyong’o
Nyong’o used Instagram to explain why she doesn’t support this year’s awards.
Alongside the photo explaining her thoughts, she included a quote from James Baldwin.
“Not everything that is faced can be changed. But nothing can be changed until it is faced,” she wrote.
Spike Lee
Famed director Lee announced on Instagram that he won’t attend this year’s ceremony.
“How is it possible for the 2nd consecutive year all 20 contenders under the actor category are white?” he wrote. “It’s no coincidence I’m writing this as we celebrate the 30th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s birthday. 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.’ For too many years when the Oscars nominations are revealed, my office phone rings off the hook with the media asking me my opinion about the lack of African-Americans and this year was no different. For once, (Maybe) I would like the media to ask all the white nominees and studio heads how they feel about another all white ballot.” [sic]
Jada Pinkett Smith
Pinkett Smith released a video on Facebook explaining why she wouldn’t attend this year’s Oscars.
“Here’s what I do know. Begging for acknowledgement, or even asking, diminishes dignity, and diminishes power, and we are a dignified people, and we are powerful, and let’s not forget it,” she said.
Will Smith
Smith quickly followed his wife’s lead and announced his intent to boycott.
“At this current time we’re uncomfortable to stand there and say this is OK,” he said during an appearance on Good Morning America. “There’s a position we hold in this community, and if we’re not part of the solution, we’re part of the problem.”
Mark Ruffalo
Ruffalo plans to attend the ceremony, but told reporters he supports the boycott.
“I’m weighing it, yes. That’s where I’m at right now,” Ruffalo said. “I woke up in the morning thinking, ‘What is the right way to do this?’ Because if you look at Martin Luther King’s legacy, what he was saying was, the good people who don’t act are much worse than the people, the wrongdoers, who are purposely not acting and don’t know the right way.”
He later tweeted about his intent to attend, writing, “To clear up any confusion. I will be going to the Oscars in support of the victims of clergy Sexual Abuse and good journalism.”
Steve Harvey
Harvey wasn’t invited to the Oscars, but told reporters he would boycott if he were.
“I respect the boycott,” he said, adding that he does not support calls for host Chris Rock to step down.
“You can’t dump that on him, and I think that night, I think we need Chris Rock,” he said. “Chris Rock is going to say something that night.”
He continued, “You take Chris off, ain’t no blacks. Nowhere,” he said. “You can’t go forward and backwards at the same time. Chris Rock will be the best thing for the movement for the Oscars, than even the people not showing up. Trust and believe, Chris Rock is too smart and courageous of a guy, and I think he should host the Oscars.”
Steve McQueen
2014 Oscar-winning director McQueen told reporters racism in Hollywood goes deeper than award shows.
“I think racism has a lot to do with it, but also the whole idea of people not being adventurous enough in thinking outside of the box of what they possibly think is the norm,” he said. “It’s about executives… giving those storylines and those actors a fair bite.”
Tyrese Gibson
Gibson is one star calling on Oscars host Chris Rock to step down from the gig.
“There is no joke that he can crack. There is no way for him to seize the moment and come into this thing and say, ‘I’m going to say this and say that I’m going to address the issue but then I’m still going to keep my gig as the host,'” Gibson told People magazine. “The statement that you make is that you step down.”
50 Cent
50 Cent has also publicly asked Rock to ditch his hosting duties.
He posted a photo of Rock on Instagram, writing alongside it, “Chris please do not do the oscars awards. You mean a lot man, don’t do it. Please.” [sic]
Whoopi Goldberg
Goldberg doesn’t support the boycott, but said she wants more conversations about racism in Hollywood.
“We have this conversation every year, and it pisses me off,” she said on The View. “Every year we get all fired up, and then the rest of the year, nobody says anything. These movies have been coming out — we’ve been going to see them. I’m sure people notice when there’s a lack of diversity in a movie, so why are we speaking about it now?
Steven Spielberg
Spielberg revealed in a February interview that he’s not “100 percent behind” the Academy’s stated plans to address its lack of diversity going forward. He also said he was “surprised” the Academy did not nominate Straight Outta Compton for best picture or Idris Elba for best supporting actor.
Antony Hegerty
?It was degrading to watch the articles in Variety, The Daily Telegraph, Pitchfork, Stereogum, etc. start to appear,” Hegerty wrote in a lengthy Facebook post about not being invited to perform at the Oscars, despite being nominated. “Eclipsing earlier notices of congratulations, now the papers were naming me as one of two artists to have been ‘cut’ by the Academy due to ‘time constraints’. In the next sentence it was announced that Dave Grohl, not nominated in any category, had been added to the list of performers.”
Shonda Rhimes
The day of the 2016 Oscars, Shonda Rhimes tweeted out: “Know why I hate ‘why is diversity so important’ question? It implies matter should be UP FOR DEBATE. As if LACK of diversity could be valid.”
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