2009 Oscars = Hope

The Academy Awards just ended and I’ll be honest, I was extremely happy with the results. A film with a predominantly Indian cast won 8 Oscars, including Best Picture, while Sean Penn won Best Actor for his portrayal of Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man to be elected to a public office. Although this is only an awards show, I really think tonight’s results will go a long way towards spreading the message of racial/sexual orientation equality into a mainstream consciousness. For those of you who watched or saw clips from the show, it was so evident that the cast of “Slumdog Millionaire” were just happy to be there. Their enthusiasm is proof that the American Dream can exist on some level. However, we all know that for others, the Dream is just a myth as a result of oppression.

Sticking with the Oscar theme, it certainly isn’t a new revelation that acceptance speeches are sometimes used to promote a personal cause or agenda of an actor (See Marlon Brando Says "No Thanks"). Tonight was no different, and it was inspiring to hear the overwhelming applause after each speech instead of the awkward silence which is sometimes followed by a mixture of uncertain boo’s and claps. This means our founding words of, “all men are created equal,” are finally gaining a wider audience many many years later. But, as we know, this was not always the case and we still have a long way to go.