#OscarsSoWhite: Jada Pinkett Smith, Spike Lee Boycotts 2016 Oscars
As the 2016 Oscars fast approaches, the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite resurfaces according to the Irish Examiner. The publication reports that actress Jada Pinkett Smith and Spike Lee also reportedly used the phrase in light of the recently released Oscar nominees who are all white actors.
According to the news agency, it has been two years in a row that the Academy Awards has only nominated and awarded white actors, and this year high-profile celebrities have noticed and are now speaking against it.
Pinkett-Smith and Lee are also not just plainly talking but will also boycott the awards ceremony in support of people of color who have done phenomenal works in the industry but haven't given the opportunity to be nominated, the news agency reports.
In a lengthy post on Instagram, Lee wrote his disappointment towards the show, which will be airing in February. The message was also posted on the same day that Martin Luther King Jr. was being remembered for his birthday.
Alongside a black-and-white photo of Lee, he wrote, "How Is It Possible For The 2nd Consecutive Year All 20 Contenders Under The Actor Category Are White?" adding that "40 White Actors In 2 Years And No Flava At All. We Can't Act?! WTF!! It's No Coincidence I'm Writing This As We Celebrate The 30th Anniversary Of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's Birthday."
Pinkett-Smith also had something to say. A Facebook post, she taped herself in a video as she explained, "Begging for acknowledgement, or even asking, diminishes dignity and diminishes power. And we are a dignified people and we are powerful."
The actress added, "Let's let the academy do them, with all grace and love. And let's do us differently."
We must stand in our power!We must stand in our power.
Posted by Jada Pinkett Smith on Monday, January 18, 2016
Meanwhile, as Pinkett-Smith's Facebook video goes viral, BBC reports that the actress may also be fighting for her husband's work in "Concussion." The publication reports that Will Smith didn't get the nomination for Best actor for the NFL film.
The news agency further reveals that the show is expected to have lower ratings similar to what happened last year when Neil Patrick Harris hosted the show, which merely raked 16 percent in ratings.
Meanwhile, the news outlet said that Cheryl Boone Isaacs, the president of Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, is also disappointed with the nomination results. Isaacs said that she was "heartbroken and frustrated" at the lack of inclusion. "We need to do more, and better and more quickly," she added.
Meanwhile, ABC News reports the full list of nominees for the 2016 Oscars, which will be shown on Feb. 28, 2016.
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