Tina Fey Opens Golden Globes Monologue With Dig at HFPA’s ‘No Black Journalists’
Tina Fey wasted no time during the opening monologue of the 2021 Golden Globes to reference a recent report that the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the organization behind the awards show, has no Black members.
Fey explained that the group was made up of “90 international — no Black — journalists who attend movie junkets each year in search of a better life,” referencing a recent Los Angeles Times report from earlier this week that pointed out that the 87-member group doesn’t have a single Black member. The Time’s Up organization on Friday launched a #TimesUpGlobes protest campaign over the lack of diversity in the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.
Towards the end of the opening, cohost Amy Poehler said, “a number of Black actors and Black led projects were overlooked,” to which Fey added, “inclusivity is important and there are no black members of the HFPA. I realize you might not have gotten the memo because your office is the back booth of a French McDonald’s,” but that both her and Amy Poehler were looking forward to them changing that.
*Also Read:* HFPA Says It Will Address Lack of Black Members at 2021 Golden Globes
On Thursday, the group pledged to diversify its membership in the future.
“We are fully committed to ensuring our membership is reflective of the communities around the world who love film, TV and the artists inspiring and educating them,” the organization said in a statement. “We understand that we need to bring in Black members, as well as members from other underrepresented backgrounds, and we will immediately work to implement an action plan to achieve these goals as soon as possible.”
HFPA’s membership is majority female, and more than 35% of its members are from non-European countries around the world, the statement said. In an interview with Variety, former HFPA board chair Meher Tatna said the organization had not had a Black member since at least 2002 when Tatna joined the group.
More to come…
