Pasadena, CA — In a Huffington Post piece published today, National Hispanic Media Coalition (NHMC) President & CEO Alex Nogales rejects claims that “diversity was the winner” at the 2014 Academy Awards, calling attention to the fact that American Latinos “were simply not invited.”
In the piece, Nogales dismissed a prominent media outlet’s inaccurate claim that 11% of the Oscar presenters list was “Hispanic or black,” calling it “irresponsible” for media outlets and the Academy to claim actress Penélope Cruz’s participation as a victory for the American Latino community. “We don’t know ourselves if the European actress identifies as Hispanic, and certainly not as an American Latina,” he wrote.
Highlighting the fact that American Latinos are the least represented on screen despite watching more movies on average than any other American group, Nogales said this year’s Oscars shed light on the fact that American Latinos continue to be shut out from the film industry, and called on film studios and organizations to commit to diversity and Latino inclusion, welcoming and urging “the same working relationship with major film studios and organizations [as we have with major television networks].”
“I recognize the steps made towards inclusion of American Latinos,” Nogales added. “But it is even more critical to recognize the long road still ahead. Or else we risk undermining progress thinking that we have reached real equality.”
Nogales’ full blog post can be read at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/alex-nogales/not-a-big-night-for-latinos_b_4905453.html.
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