Tyrese Calls for Chris Rock to Step Down as 2016 Oscars Host

Should people of color refrain from participating all together? “But I can fly to LA for two or three days of meetings and never encounter an African American person in any position of power. With much respect in the midst of deep disappointment”.

“This is a hard but important conversation, and it’s time for big changes”, she said in a statement released Monday night.

The actress has taken to social media to explain her decision. The hashtag #OscarsSoWhite immediately began trending on Twitter, and critics, fans, and celebrities were left wondering how it was possible that so many of this year’s acclaimed performances by minorities, such as Idris Elba in Beasts of No Nation and Michael B. Jordan in Creed, were shut out by the Academy.

Lee’s Instagram message said that he “means no disrespect” to Oscars host Chris Rock and producer Reginald Hudlin or to academy President Boone Isaacs.

Director Spike Lee has also confirmed he will not attend the 2016 Oscars. “And let’s not even get into the other branches”, he captioned in a photo of King, Jr. Of the 6,028 voting members, 94 percent are white, 77 percent are men and 86 percent are over 50 years old.

Recent additions among black actors, musicians and directors include Chris Rock – the 2016 Oscars host -, Oscar victor Lupita Nyong’o, Prince, Pharrell Williams, “Selma” director Ava DuVernay, comedian Kevin Hart and Steve McQueen, the black British director of 2014 Oscar-winning movie “12 years a Slave”.

In his post, Lee made it clear the Academy Awards is only part of the problem in an industry with deep-rooted diversity issues.

Membership of the Academy is by recommendation of two other members, or is automatically awarded by being Oscar nominated. Pinkett Smith, wife of Concussion actor Will Smith, said the academy has the right to acknowledge and invite whomever it chooses, but leaving black actors “begging for acknowledgment” diminishes the community. While we observe their outstanding accomplishments, I’m both frustrated and heartbroken regarding the dearth of inclusion.

The controversy has put pressure on the academy, whose top leader said this week it would review membership recruitment and pledged to make “big changes”. “We can’t act?!” said Lee, who was awarded an honorary Oscar in November.

Jeremy Larner, who won an Oscar for best original screenplay in 1972 for “The Candidate”, said that he has “voted for many people of color for awards”, which is fast becoming the “some of my best friends are black!” excuse for this whole thing.

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