Austin talking in all caps

I decided to take a look over every film that’s ever won best picture at the Academy Awards, to get a little bit of context. From 1927-2010, there were 12 films in which I could remember a Black character. 12.

Examples: A Black soldier under the command of a white sergeant, a ‘racist’ Black cop with a Colombian girlfriend, the janitor of a gym owned by a white man, a slave, a white gunslinger’s Black sidekick, a chauffeur, a gang member, a piano player, a slave.

Most of them were Morgan Freeman.

Main white characters include the King of England, a bunch of elves and hobbits and wizards, a schizophrenic but brilliant mathematician, a brilliant but deranged serial killer, a world-famous composer, a world famous stage author, a pile of extraordinarily wealthy Irish and Italian mob bosses, and all the white saviors you can imagine. You know, ordinary fuckin’ people.

I’m staring at these two lists wondering what else to say. I think that’s all I got. Take your place on this heaping pile of shit, The Help. Good for you.