Was a One-Year Hiatus Enough for The Golden Globes to Truly Fix Its Inclusivity Problem?

When I heard that the 80th Golden Globe Awards would be televised this year, I was admittedly hesitant to get too excited–especially when I saw that some of my favorites like Angela Bassett and Michelle Yeoh were nominated. In 2021, NBC announced that it wouldn’t air the 79th Golden Globe Award ceremony after the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA)–the organization behind the Golden Globes Awards– came under scrutiny for its lack of Black membership representation and its shady ways of exchanging votes for expensive perks from studios.

On the heels of the #OscarsSoWhite movement, a call for BIPOC creators to be recognized for their work in the industry, it was strange to see how a small group of journalists still had such influence on what was deemed excellence on TV and film.

And while the HFPA promised change, among the most significant reasons cited by NBC as to why they decided not to air the 2022 ceremony was that “change of this magnitude takes time and work, and we feel strongly that the HFPA needs time to do it.”

Was skipping one year long enough for the HFPA to learn from its mistakes and truly honor BIPOC creatives in Hollywood? Or is this another example of performative acquiescence rather than real change?

Publicly, the entertainment industry overall expresses a commitment to righting the wrongs of the past. Thanks in large part to social media, we see networks trying to keep up with demands from a diverse audience who unapologetically Tweet their desire to see authentic stories reflected on the small and big screens. It feels like every other week, we are introduced to new BIPOC led TV and film deals, only to be met with overwhelmingly white and male decision makers quietly pulling the plug on a lot of these projects just as swiftly.

As a queer, undocumented immigrant from the Latinx community, it is disheartening to see shows like Gentefied, One Day At a Time, Vida, Los Spookys, and Gordita Chronicles get axed without the chance to be considered for major awards. Whatever you feel about these shiny award ceremonies, the reality is that just being nominated can lead to more opportunities for the creatives of color behind them, and pave the way for others to follow.

While it was amazing to see folks like Angela Bassett (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever), Ke Huy Quan (Everything Everywhere All At Once), Zendaya (Euphoria), Quinta Brunson (Abbott Elementary), Tyler James Williams (Abbott Elementary), and Guillermo Del Toro (Pinocchio) win in their categories, this year’s Golden Globes nominations still fell short when it came to Black, Latinx, Indigenous, Trans, and Disabled nominees.

Seeing Michelle Yeoh playfully go off on the orchestra at this year’s Golden Globes –they began the playoff music during her speech for her first win– reminded me that there is indeed some hope for this monster we call show business and that is why we as creators must stay tenacious and continue to push for adequate representation and recognition across the industry.

This is why I co-created The Disruptors Fellowship, a program designed by The Center for Cultural Power to offer mentorship and financial resources to up-and-coming TV writers of color who are either undocumented, formerly undocumented, trans, nonbinary, or disabled.

Throughout my four years of building and running this fellowship, I have met incredible TV writers, directors, showrunners, producers, and other players in the industry –many of them BIPOC themselves– who are eager to share their own experiences in the field and guide our fellows as they enter this industry.

When these dedicated individuals mentor our fellows, they invest their time because they know the importance of sharing art, as well as the obstacles that come with it. Our Mentors are direct and transparent in their approach to guiding our fellows. In my opinion, transparency is the key to better preparing our fellows for a career that can be creatively rewarding at best and heartbreaking at worst.

While it is important that the Golden Globes –and the industry overall for that matter– aspire to remove obstacles and biases that hinder inclusivity and create pathways to showcase more BIPOC talent, the intention alone is not enough.

We need action that starts with investing in creatives of color while they’re just getting started. Yes, give them the financial resources to develop projects. The industry needs to create a space where writers, actors, directors, and producers from marginalized communities are given access to the resources that their talents deserve so that they can actually focus on their craft.

BIPOC culture makers also need to be given opportunities to create without the need to appease white audiences. I grew up watching all kinds of white-led TV shows and films. I still identified with some of these characters because their white creators were given the time, resources, and space to create full-fledged characters.

I’m unsure about the future of televised award shows —this year’s NBC Golden Globes ratings went down 26% from their last telecast in 2021. I am sure that an awards show shouldn’t be the biggest way we measure talent or determine which creators and projects are invested in. Unfortunately, as long as such awards exist, they will continue to have an influence on what kind of stories are greenlit for the big and small screens and which stories even get a general meeting.

Here’s to hoping that archaic institutions will change their limited thinking and voting as we navigate award season, and BIPOC creators responsible for creating tectonic shifts in cultural conversations and furthering representation across the industry are recognized for their excellence.