Anghus Houvouras calls for a boycott of the Academy Awards…
I’m frustrated.
Another year, another round of Oscar nominations, and another outpouring of anger about the lack of female and minority nominees. Right now a legion of entertainment bloggers are hammering keys like monkeys trying to write Shakespeare to tell me the world ain’t fair. Thanks for that. I wasn’t aware that the deck was stacked in some people’s favor before the 13th article about why Selma deserved more nominations.
Complaining about award ceremonies (which are already giant circle jerks) not being all inclusive is the height of pointlessness. Hollywood objectifies women! Yes. There aren’t enough female directors! Correct! The Academy is made up of old white men! It sure is. Whiter than Ted Knight clad in nautical gear preparing to the christen the Golden Wasp.
The frustration stems from the painful, agonizing, simplistic truth that anyone can observe and comment on disparity. Identifying societal ills is hardly rocket science, and pointing out that the Academy Awards could benefit from casting a wider net is something people have been pitching since before the Civil Rights movement had a name. Rather than just acknowledging the problems, why doesn’t someone put forth an idea that could actually lead to change. But this is not what writers do. We hem, we haw, and we enjoy the friction because it gives us something to write about.
The question I pose to the disenfranchised is this: What are you going to do about it?
Why not stand up for your principles like those in the Civil Rights movement? If you believe an institution to be corrupt, then make a stand.
Anghus Houvouras is a North Carolina based writer and filmmaker. His latest work, the novel My Career Suicide Note, is available from Amazon. Follow him on Twitter.
