Tim Boyle/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — A California congressman on Tuesday issued a letter to the president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, expressing his “shock at the lack of diversity” among this year’s Oscar nominees.
The lack of diversity among the nominees was a hot topic after they were announced last month. All of the acting nominees are white.
In his note to Cheryl Boone Isaacs, Rep. Tony Cárdenas, who represents the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County, states that Hollywood and film “portray who we are as a people and what we value as a culture.”
“When we fail to include diverse, talented faces, reflecting both today and tomorrow’s America, we send a poor message to our youth and the world,” Cárdenas says. “We are not celebrating the diversity that makes this country unique. I believe we must do better.”
Cárdenas invites Boone Isaacs to meet with him to discuss how to build a more diverse entertainment industry. He CC’d a number of Academy branches and studio executives on his letter.
Cárdenas released his letter on the same day Oscars voting ended.
The Academy Awards will air on ABC this Sunday.
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