Academy Awards breaks diversity drought

As she took the microphone at the 89th Academy Awards, Viola Davis accepted her award for “Best Supporting Actress” for her role in the 2016 film “Fences.” Davis was one of the first black actresses to win an Oscar in years and now is officially the first African American to be nominated for three Academy Awards.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), a professional honorary organization, has in recent years faced heavy criticism for nominating more white actors than any other demographic, reflecting the lack of diversity in Hollywood that many find problematic. In the 2015 and 2016 Academy Awards, there have been absolutely no actors of color nominated, and very few non-white directors or other crucial members of production.

For instance, the 2015 film “Straight Outta Compton” received raving reviews and had a cast of young unknown black actors in addition to a black director. However, the only nominees from the film were its two white screenwriters.

The panel of exclusively white nominees led to a backlash from fans and members of the film community alike. This soon spawned the trending #OscarsSoWhite hashtag and social media campaign started by April Regin, editor of BroadwayBlack.com.

This year, however, a record-breaking six black actors and seven other actors of color were nominated for awards. Among these personalities were Mahershala Ali and Naomie Harris (“Moonlight”), Viola Davis and Denzel Washington (“Fences”), Octavia Spencer (“Hidden Figures”), Ruth Negga (“Loving”) and Dev Patel (“Lion”).

In addition, Best Picture nominations included “Moonlight,” “Fences” and “Hidden Figures,” which each highlight the complicated race-related social implications that have plagued the United States for centuries.

In response to the outrage, the Academy decided to make the AMPAS more diverse and double its minority membership by 2020, according to an announcement made by the Academy on Jan. 22. This change is already seen with the Oscars this year.

However, the representation of non-white nominees clearly was not just a move by the Academy to avoid another public relations problem. With the films about issues in the black community and nominees of color being highly acclaimed by fans and critics for their quality and excellence, their success in the Academy Awards can be contributed to the awakening of Hollywood to societal discrimination.

The unfortunate thing is that we’re still classifying actors, directors and producers due to their race, rather than the work that they have done. The Oscars shouldn’t be about counting the number of black nominees there are — it should be an opportunity to commend all those who have furthered the art form of film.

The issue is that movies are still so segregated. Take “La La Land,” for example. The artistry and difficult execution of the movie were not helped by the fact that the cast is predominantly white. And “Moonlight,” a thrilling and complex film, has an almost completely black cast. The Best Picture category became a showdown between a white film and a black film, not just two amazingly good movies.

The integrity of the process has become tainted, straying away from merit and into political and racial territory. It’s evident that this is not something that will pass anytime soon. In a time of tumultuous race relations, attacks on immigrants and severe inequality, a high-profile awards show that is so visible becomes the microphone by which societal trends are projected.

The Oscars are heading in a good direction by starting the recognize minority-dominated movies and performances. But let’s hope that they can cross the bridge of race relations and become an awards show that is diverse but doesn’t value a performer’s racial background above the quality of the work.