ARTICLE CONTINUATION HOLLYWOOD:

Continued from page 3

I’m not even sure if it was funny, to be honest, it was just so truthful. In this self-examination, Marlon gives real game to the audience. How the industry really only allows for a limited number (usually one) Black person to be in the high circles at a time. How persona can become a person’s livelihood, and that causes stress and depression and envy. And most importantly, diversity is only based on the comfort of a predominately white audience.

Scene 4: Thoughts

In the world of mainstream media, Black men are typically, if not always, seen as a threat. The criminal, the pimp, the thief, or just the plain ol’ degenerate. A lot of Black men in the industry put on a W.E.B. DuBois-like persona to counteract it. Some Shakespearian-trained, Ivy League grad who’s been playing “Crip Number 3” on some show for four years, will be escorted out with the SAT words flowing in every interview.

There have been five Black Best Actor winners in the nearly 100year run of the Oscars for the top acting honor. While running that race, NEVER make ANY mistakes, say ANYTHING wrong, or all that work is gone. It’s a crazy thing. The reality is, it’s still the same game it was in 1928 when the Oscars started. It’s just in color.

This is an excerpt of a commentary that first appeared on Word In Black. Read the entire article on www.sdvoice.info