Conclusion and Moving Forward
The Academy Awards, despite how interesting it may be to the general public, is extremely racially bias and does not recognize the efforts of both actors and creators of color. Nominators of the AMPAS chose who they feel is deserving of a prestigious award, but are unconsciouslly bias because of the predominantly white group who chooses nominees. Throughout the history of the Oscars, there have been numerous times where actors of color have been preceeded by their white counterparts simply because of their race. On top of that, Hollywood has made it extremely difficult for actors of color to exist outside of existing stereotypes and tropes (especially ones created during slavery through Minstrel Shows).
The past few years, the media has been a successful outlet for exposing systematic racism in outlets across the country, includng cinema. This has allowed for more research and bringing more disparities to light. As fun as these awards shows can be fun to watch, supporting these institutions only allows for more opportunities to continue discriminating against creators of colors.
So how can we move forward? The Academy Awards have been historically racist on top of the lack of opporunties that Hollywood presents creators of color. The biggest change that can highlight the diversity in movies is to change the demographic of the AMPAS. By providing more diversity in the nomination process ensures that there is an elimination of unconscious bias when selecting actors to win an Oscar. Additionally, there is huge inequity when it comes to funding for creators of color for motion pictures. Resdistrubuting funds and providing both box office and marketing oppotunities for these creators will allow for more success to the public, rather than just a select audience who hears about these films. There is no way to make up for the historically racist theme of Hollywood and the way the Academy has discredited actors and creators of color. But, by acknowleding the wrong doings of the past, recognizing cinematic achievemnts based on public ratings rather than bias, and providing more funding for creators all together can change the trajectory of the Academy to make it more inclusive. There are thousands of creators who deserve to have their work credited in a large scale media space like the Oscars. By discrediting their work to such a degree as seen in this project, we are doing. a disservice to both creators and the audience who can benefit from all forms of media.