Michael1942's Blog

The Racial division of the United States has not lessened no matter what the surface appearances are. We have seen the evidence in the election of Barack Obama and to another degree in the recent Oscar Nominations. What is wrong with the so called movers and shakers? These are the people we as Americans have selected, elected or chosen to be representatives of our views ( are these our views?). While the Oscars are not world changing events , they are major events in America. Folks will still go to see the non nominated movies out of curiosity or genuine interest but will never voice an opinion about the lack of inclusion by non white judges or who ever makes the selection of nominees. How many have ever heard of “Oscar Micheaux”  ? A turn of the century Black film maker who has a star on the Hollywood walk of fame and the listed honors and legacy below ( From Wikipedia):

Legacy and honors

• The Oscar Micheaux Award for excellence was established.
• The Oscar Micheaux Sociey at Duke University continues to honor his work and educate about his legacy.^[3]
• 1987, Micheaux was recognized with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
• 1989 the Directors Guild of America honored Micheaux^[8] with a Golden Jubilee Special Award.
• The Producers Guild of America created an annual award in his name.
• 1989, the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame gave him a posthumous award.^[8]
• Gregory, South Dakota holds an annual Oscar Micheaux Film Festival.^[8]
• 2001 Oscar Micheaux Golden Anniversary Festival (March 24–25) Great Bend, Kansas
• 2002, scholar Molefi Kete Asante included Oscar Micheaux on his list of 100 Greatest African Americans.^[9]
• On June 22, 2010 the US Postal Service issued a 44-cent, Oscar Micheaux commemorative stamp.^[10]
• 2011, the Taubman Museum of Art in Roanoke, Virginia created a category for donors, the Micheaux Society, in honor of Micheaux.^[11]
• Midnight Ramble: Oscar Micheaux and the Story of Race Movies (1994) is a documentary whose title refers to the early 20th-century practice of some segregated cinemas of screening films for African-American audiences only at matinees and midnight. The documentary was produced by Pamela Thomas, directed by Pearl Bowser and Bestor Cram, and written by Clyde Taylor. It was first aired on the PBS show The American Experience in 1994, and released in 2004.
• On January 19, 2014, Block Starz Music Television previewed The Czar of Black Hollywood, a 2014 documentary film^[12] chronicling the early life and career of Oscar Micheaux using Library of Congress archived footage, photos, illustrations and vintage music.^[13] On February 13, The Czar of Black Hollywood was announced by American radio host Tom Joyner on his nationally syndicated program, The Tom Joyner Morning Show, as part of a “Little Known Black History Fact” on Micheaux.^[14] In an interview with The Washington Times, filmmaker Bayer L. Mack said he read the 2007 biography Oscar Micheaux: The Great and Only by Patrick McGilligan and was inspired to produce The Czar of Black Hollywood because Micheaux’s life mirrored his own.^[15][16] Mack told The Huffington Post he was shocked that, in spite of Micheaux’s historical significance, there was “virtually nothing out there about [his] life”.^[17] The film’s executive producer, Frances Presley Rice, told the Sun Sentinel that Micheaux was the first “indie movie producer.”^[18] Oscar Micheaux: The Czar of Black Hollywood premiered on September 26, 2014 at the 99th Annual Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) Convention in Memphis, TN.^[19]

If not now, when? We have seen the divide and we need to immediately start the work to build the bridge beginning  with who we elect to office. Keep in mind that behind closed doors the “dirty, racial and demeaning names” are still being used as divisive tools. It is well to want to believe that the divide is closing but the reality remains as an uneasy layer under our public persona.

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