Michael Moore sounds off on Hollywood's diversity problems: 'It's a form of aparthied'
Director Michael Moore recently compared Hollywood's lack of diversity to South Africa's apartheid..
Michael Moore was doing a Q&A session with director Leslie Harris at the New York Film Festival this Sunday when the question of Hollywood’s diversity issues came up, and he compared it to South Africa’s apartheid.
“This is absolutely wrong,” he said of the distinct lack of female directors.
“I’m missing out on her story. Their stories. That person,” he continued. “What are the great films that you and I are missing because their great voices can’t be heard? I want to go to that movie. I want to hear that voice. I’m being denied that voice by a system that’s sent out to give the reins to white men.”
He was particularly infuriated by the fact that less than 2% of the top 100 movies in 2014 were directed by women.
“I’m telling you, anthropologists are not gonna look kindly on us. We’re gonna look like Neanderthals,” he stated. “It’s a form of apartheid, folks, when a minority controls everything and the majority gets a bone thrown to them.”
While Moore is not known for staying silent and has continued to be outspoken and unapologetic in taking stands on issues he believes in, many are questioning the comparison of Hollywood diversity to a system of institutionalized, dehumanizing racism. But at a time when cries for more diversity are still frustratingly ignored, it might just be radical statement like this that finally get through to the higher-ups in Hollywood. We can only hope.
