Actress Jada Pinkett Smith posted a call to action video on Martin Luther King Jr. Day announcing that she will be boycotting the Oscars because of the alarming lack of diversity in the nominations. With an immense amount of grace and literally glowing in the sunlight, Smith asks why people of color are seeking the approval of the Academy and suggest they take the time, energy and resources spent on the awards and put it into their own programs.
“Here’s what I do know, begging for acknowledgment or even asking for it diminishes dignity and diminishes power and we are a dignified people and we are powerful. And let’s not forget it. Let’s let the Academy do them with all grace and love and let’s do us. Differently. I got nothing but love. “
We must stand in our power.
Posted by Jada Pinkett Smith on Monday, January 18, 2016
The video was met with much praise, but there are critics who say she is only concerned about the issue because her husband Will Smith didn’t get a nomination. The most notable and vocal critic is none other Aunt Viv. Yes, Fresh Prince of Bel-Air star Janet Hubert posted her own video tearing apart the Smiths, saying, “Girlfriend, there’s a lot of shit going on in the world that you all don’t seem to recognize.” It seems to be an outlandish response to Smith’s calm and eloquently put argument. Hubert says, “it’s not about being bitter,” although the four-minute-long video tearing Jada and Will Smith apart would beg to differ.
The Oscars have been overwhelmingly white for the past 88 years, however, it still remains a culturally significant event. The failure to recognize any people of color for the second year in a row should be important to people working in Hollywood. It is time people of color have the opportunity to be recognized for their great work. This starts with diverse roles being written for actors of all ethnicities. The Oscars should be boycotted and Hollywood should receive the message: discluding people of color from films and not celebrating the amazing films that do include them is unacceptable and is no longer a viable way to do things. This could start by refusing to celebrate an antiquated institution and do something more valuable with our time come February 28.
Photo via Facebook/Jada Pinkett Smith
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