Chiwetel Ejiofor, the star of the Oscar winning movie ’12 Years a Slave’, has suggested that it it is harder to be an LGBTQ actor than it is to be an African-American.
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Following the heated debate surrounding diversity in Hollywood Ejiofor made his way to ‘The Times’ where he shared his thoughts on the matter.
I hope this changes (but) I think it’s probably harder to be gay. I think sexuality is still marginalised in a way that is pretty open. I think it’s tough. I think for one’s own piece of mind, for one’s own sense of self and psychological health, I feel like that’s the horrible thing about ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ and all that ****ed-up ****, because it produces a sense of shame, and therefore this sense of being ‘less than’, you know? And I hate that. I hate that for anybody.
His remarks come after his fellow ‘Year’s player Lupita Nyong’O weighed in on the same subject following the release of this yea’s Academy Awards nominations.
She shared this message:
Do you agree?
What TF? Most of Hollywood is gay and run by gay people. As soon as he walks in a room people know he’s black but someone gay you would’t. Minorities are always second in Hollywood.
How many openly gay actors have an Oscar? How many openly gay actors starred in ANY major film release in the last 5/10/15/20 years? Think a little deeper before replying.
Zachary Quinto
Ian Murray McKellen
B.D. Wong
Jodie foster
There’s many more gay people in Hollywood you just don’t hear about it
We all have to agree that Hollywood & in fact anywhere in the world being lesbian is more appreciated & tolerated I mean look at Chalize Theron’s win and untouched by gay rumors actors can win Oscars if playing gay actor Sean Penn Milk but if u want ur career as a gay man in Tinsel town come out u will slowly fade into irrelevancy