In a move that disappointed many (though was it really a surprise?) the Academy Award nominees for 2016 were suspiciously a lot less diverse than they should be. In fact, for the second year in a row, every nominee was white. Also known as the Oscars, the awards represent the highest honor for movies and films. With a long tradition of awards, beginning in 1929, the Oscars have long been criticized for favoring certain movie dramas and being influenced more by movie marketing than movie quality. But, in recent years, the prominence of white nominees has pointed to deeper issues of discrimination in Hollywood.Although the exact same situation occurred at the 2015 Oscars, little has changed. A major problem is the voters who decide the year’s award winners because they’re mostly white males. In fact, a Los Angeles Times study in 2012 found that the Academy Award voters were 94% Caucasian and 77% male. The continuing lack of diversity has led many famous faces to boycott this year’s Oscars, including Will Smith. Even Oscar nominee Sylvester Stallone considered boycotting. “Last year the same thing happened where most if not all of the nominees were white actors,” said Arshaun Darabnia, a freshman at NYU Shanghai. “The issue has been brought to attention before and the fact that nobody in a position of power has done anything about it calls for more drastic measures. Boycotting is probably the right idea — they’re starting the conversation nobody’s going to have unless people are taking action.” This year, the president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Cheryl Boone Isaacs, pledged to make big changes in the voting process. However, many feel that the latest #oscarssowhite movement should not have happened, considering that a record number of women and minorities ran for seats on the Academy’s board to governors in 2015. Their efforts seem to have had little impact so far.In addition, Hollywood’s dismal standards for diversity are a result of deeply ingrained racist tropes—film stereotypes that perpetuate discrimination and limit acting roles for non-white actors. Some tropes in recent movies are the “super-athlete” black man and the “terrorist” Arab. With most minority actors and actresses only able to find these simple stereotyped roles, it makes it hard for them to truly showcase their acting talents…and harder for an all-white voting body to see their potential for an Oscar. The Academy faces a unique public relations crisis—online, movie fans have expressed outrage and critiques, and stars like Rebel Wilson have poked fun at the Academy’s failings, like her speech at the BAFTAs. For some, change needs to be immediate, while others assert that the Academy, like American society itself, will slowly evolve into something better. Famous director Steven Spielberg believes that the issue isn’t even the Academy’s fault: “It’s not just the academy […] It’s people that hire, it’s the stories that are being told.” In the light of recent race tensions in the US between black citizens and police officers, there are many who are turning to the media to help reverse the subliminal racism and bias felt by many people of color today. If more diverse roles are open for minority actors and actresses, and they are recognized for their contributions to these industries, then perhaps the negative violent stereotypes will begin to dissipate as well. Many believe that the problem with diversity starts in the pages of movie scripts themselves and that discriminatory stereotypes need to be written out of movies in order for increased diversity. “If individuals within our society can’t acknowledge prejudice at such an evident and conceivable level, then how could you ever expect our culture as a whole to move past and correct our already systemically oppressive society?” wrote freshman Claudia Dzaluk in a tweet with the hashtag #OscarSoWhite. This article was written by Savannah Billman with research contributed by Maeve Lazor. Please send an email to [email protected] to get in touch. Photo Credit: Arshaun Darabnia.