Hollywood and diversity now seem to go hand-in-hand. You cannot talk about the latest films or award shows without using the “D word.” Diversity in race and gender appear to be the focus point for many writers and researchers. For instance, Ezinne Ukoha, a writer on this site talks a lot about the media and representation of Black narratives and actors. Although her blog does not necessarily focus on solely those two things, she takes the opportunity to speak on all aspects of life. At the top of the page, she is said to be a “Top writer in: Fashion, Feminism, Racism, [and] Culture.” Apparently, 30K people agree with this description.
So, who is Ezinne Ukoha?
According to the Patreon link that she includes in her bio, she is an artist that enjoys writing about culture and offering her ideas, but at a cost. She desires to be paid for her intellect because she feels that companies like Huffington Post and others make a lot of money off of fellow artist (See her bio from Huffington Post above). Just in case you didn’t look above, Ukoha’s bio says that she comes from a journalism background and has lot of experience writing for several publication, such as Essence and MadameNoire. It’s clear that she knows how to engage with an audience about these issues properly.
So, why does she write about diversity in media?
A. She’s a Black woman. Up until recently, Black women were not represented in the most positive light by the media. I’m sure, like me and many other Black women, she has felt the rejection from the media.
B. She’s a media consumer. It’s kind of hard to get through this life and not consumer some sort of media.
Since April 2017, Ukoha has been using Medium as her home for writing. She writes daily and sometimes posts more than one article. She definitely keeps her reader’s attention with the consistency.
One of the first articles that caught my attention was : Why Stories About Black People, From The White Perspective, Is Rarely a Good Idea. She discuss how she became a writer after the murders of unarmed Black men in 2014. It was during this time that she realized that the pain of Black people was profitable to white-owned media outlets. She went on to discuss popular films with Black actors and why they were problematic. The films she named were Precious, The Butler, 12 Years A Slave, and lastly, Detroit. Ukoha names white privilege as the issue with these movies. Yes, they cast and told a narrative of Black people, but they are white-washed like the term, “diversity.” To Ukoha, these films were made to “define Black pain on their terms.”
The White interpretation of the Black experience is the reason why Hidden Figures ended up being a sour delivery . The screenplay duties were split between two White writers(Alison Schroeder and Theodore Melfi) — and anyone with a pulse should’ve been able to detect the intense Whitewashing.The film was a poorly conceived antidote for White people who can only support a film about three Black women who broke barriers — if its overblown with the fictitious “White savior” element that only men like Kevin Costner can play with familiar precision.
Her tone in this article showed that she was frustrated, but wanted her audience to see her point of view. She uses a lot of personal experience to convey these issues. For instance, she recalls seeing Precious in movie theaters and feeling uncomfortable by the amount of white people enjoying the pain of the young Black teenager and being grateful that they didn’t have to go through the same troubles that are assigned to many Black and Brown people. I do think this point was a little extreme unless she actually heard someone say something along those lines, but I understand the sentiment behind her words.
The second article that stood out to me is Ukoha’s Why Can’t Hollywood Give Black Women The (Right) White Treatment? I was drawn to this article because I had a feeling that it would express my frustration with Hollywood. It was also the first time that I had seen someone address this issue. Ukoha begins the article by talking about her hopes for the 2018 Oscars and how she hopes that the #OscarsSoWhite hashtag does not appear again. She wants diversity in the films that are celebrated, therefore, not needing the hashtag. She continues by talking about the “firsts.” (As we know, I have a love-hate relationship with that word.) One of the “firsts” is the nomination for Mary J. Blige for Best Supporting Actress for Mudbound. She goes on to include the other “first” of the year: Sterling K. Brown’s Golden Globe best actor in a TV drama. It is not that she does not celebrate these wins, but like me, she is tired of having to say the “first” because it should have happened years ago.
Again, when you consider that this is 2018 — it’s hard not be rattled by these epic wins in ways that don’t necessary warm the heart.- Ezinne Ukoha
Ukoha also highlights that historically, it has been easier for Black men to receive accolades from Hollywood than for Black women. She explains that Dee Rees, the director of Mudbound, was excluded from the nominations despite Mary J. Blige being nominated for an Oscar. The author claims that she was excluded because of the mediocrity and whiteness of Lady Bird. Acording to Ukoha, the “Academy voters can’t resist tales about complex White teenagers who are saddled with the responsibility of navigating awkward and sometimes turbulent relationships with family, friends and the boy that almost got away.” I have not seen Lady Bird, nor do I plan to… So I can’t vouch for the accuracy of that statement. However, I do agree that the Academy does vote for what they know and are familiar with.
Continuing the article, she speaks about how the conversation about diversity has changed television. Shondaland is one of the leaders in the business that is creating roles for Black women. Without Shonda Rhimes, Black women would not have leading roles on Primetime. Also, Ukoha mentions how women like producer,Effie Brown are pushing for more diversity behind the camera and are facing backlash from men in the industry. Actor, Matt Damon responded:
“When you’re talking about diversity, you do it in the casting of the film, not the casting of the show.”
With this statement in mind, it is possible to think that most men and leaders in Hollywood only care about diversity on the camera, not in the decision-making rooms. This is part of the reason we are not seeing many Black women in leading roles on-camera and behind the scenes. Ukoha ends with this statement:
Black women should be catered to in the same way White women are permitted the longevity of careers that begin with the ingenue phase. The White treatment isn’t a bad thing — it’s just unfair when it blocks the advancement of others who’ve also earned the right to be seen and heard.
It’s time to make things right — not White.
And she’s right! This article resonated with me as a Black woman who is a creator. I believe that her tone was very similar to the first article that I mentioned, except this one feels like it came from a less angry, but more heartfelt place. She is still calling society out for their racism, but a little hope shines through the criticism.
I really wish that Medium allowed readers to comment because I would have loved to see the dialogue her pieces are causing. She does not hide her opinion and it is often blunt. I know that her views have the ability to rub someone the wrong way. But on the other hand, she does have 30K followers so she must be sparking some sort of thinking processes in those individuals.
