Hollywood calls out Golden Globes after HFPA vows to 'bring in black members'
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Recently, Hollywood Foreign Press Association vowed to include more 'Black members' into their organization after a report uncovered that none out of the 87-member-group of international journalists involved in selecting the award nominees were black.
A few days after Los Angeles Times expose on Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the organisation behind the Golden Globe Awards, many celebrities who are a part of Hollywood's Time's Up are calling out the functioning of the ceremony.
Recently, Hollywood Foreign Press Association vowed to include more "Black members" into their organization. In a social media post on Friday, Time's Up wrote, "A cosmetic fix isn’t enough. #TIMESUPGlobes #TIMESUP."
A cosmetic fix isn’t enough. #TIMESUPGlobes #TIMESUP pic.twitter.com/L9tzILjt3i
— TIME'S UP (@TIMESUPNOW) February 26, 2021
"Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Not a single Black member out of 87," the post read, which included a cracked Golden Globe trophy.
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Time's Up's actions come after an investigation that brought awareness to the fact that the HFPA's 87-member group of international journalists currently has no Black members.
When nominations were announced, the HFPA was criticised for not including any Black-led movies, like 'One Night in Miami', 'Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom', 'Da 5 Bloods' or 'Judas and the Black Messiah', in the Best Picture category. Ahead of the 2021 Golden Globes on Sunday, the HFPA released a statement to the press on Friday.
"We are fully committed to ensuring our membership is reflective of the communities around the world who love film, TV and the artists inspiring and educating them," the statement read. "We understand that we need to bring in Black members, as well as members from other underrepresented backgrounds, and we will immediately work to implement an action plan to achieve these goals as soon as possible."
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Ava DuVernay tweeted, "Old news. New energy."
Old news. New energy. #TimesUpGlobes pic.twitter.com/AzJhTA42W8
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) February 26, 2021
Judd Apatow also wrote, "So many crazy things about the @goldenglobes and the Hollywood Foreign press but this is awful. #timesupglobes."
So many crazy things about the @goldenglobes and the Hollywood Foreign press but this is awful. #timesupglobes pic.twitter.com/C5PYs5zFRr
— Judd Apatow (@JuddApatow) February 26, 2021
Following suit, here's what others tweeted:
A cosmetic fix isn’t enough. #TIMESUPGlobes #TIMESUP pic.twitter.com/hjebfXIRFU
— shonda rhimes (@shondarhimes) February 26, 2021
A cosmetic fix isn’t enough. #TIMESUPglobes #TIMESUP pic.twitter.com/eywtKm74iS
— Amy Schumer (@amyschumer) February 26, 2021
How far have we come, you ask? Not far enough. A cosmetic fix isn’t enough. #TIMESUPGlobes #TIMESUP pic.twitter.com/cVpeqk1ofX
— Amber Tamblyn (@ambertamblyn) February 26, 2021
How can we ever expect accolades and opportunities be fairly awarded when those holding the power so blatantly lack fair representation? #TIMESUPGlobes https://t.co/ar6ju7vntD
— Jessica Barth (@_jessicabarth_) February 26, 2021
LA Times report also quoted current HFPA members who accuse the group of arbitrarily rejecting “well-credentialed foreign journalists” who apply for membership in favor of people who “aren’t serious journalists.” One member who was granted anonymity said, “We admit people that are not real journalists because they are not a threat to anyone.”
An HFPA spokesperson told the LA Times that Flaa’s claims are “entirely false,” but said the organization is “committed to addressing” its lack of diversity. Read more here.