Hollywood unites against lack of Golden Globes diversity with #TimesUpGlobes

The 78th annual Golden Globes is February 28 and stars are calling out the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for its lack of representation among its members and its abysmal track record for supporting diversity ahead of the prestigious ceremony.

Hollywood came out in full force in the days leading up to the 2021 Golden Globes ceremony after it was revealed that the HFPA hasn’t had a Black member in 20 years.

20 years. With. No. Black. Members.

Ava DuVernay, Sterling K. Brown, Shonda Rhimes and Jurnee Smollett were just a few of the big names that came for the HFPA, calling for change in an organization that wields so much power. Stars took to social media, calling for action using #TimesUpGlobes to rally support and raise awareness:

The Golden Globes are seen as a litmus test for the Oscars. Often hailed as the fun ceremony where celebrities can crack jokes and enjoy themselves during the dinner ceremony (pre-COVID, of course), it’s incredibly frustrating to think that a group that has so much power to launch careers could have next to no diversity among its voters.

Hollywood Foreign Press Association promises “change” at Golden Globes

By Friday evening the HFPA responded to the controversy, highlighting a statement that was previously posted on Instagram:

"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. 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."

The caption that accompanied the post promised that action would be taken during Sunday’s ceremony: “We released this statement from the HFPA earlier, and are committed to change. We will also address this in our show on Sunday.”

Given that the Golden Globes are distributed by members of the foreign press, it’s surprising to think that there is next to no representation among the voting members. In other words, who are these people and why are they so white?

The HFPA is made up of close to 90 members who hail from 55 countries. The majority of the group’s members are female and according to Variety over 35% of the members hail from non-European countries.

The HFPA hasn’t had a Black member since 2002, dating back to when Meher Tatna joined the organization. Tatna would go on to become a HFPA board member and president. She is critical of the group’s lack of diversity and notes the challenges the HFPA faces in recruiting Black journalists:

"As a person of color, it’s important to me. It’s just there are nuances, as an organization of immigrants, who write for our home country, that search [for international Black journalists] has not been easy, but that doesn’t mean we will give up. We will keep trying, and we will be part of the solution."

There will be a lot of attention on Sunday’s Golden Globes broadcast. Not only is the event adapting due to COVID-19, but there is hope that the activism of the past few days leads to real change in HFPA membership.