Hollywood often talks a big game about diversity, but do they actually practice it? “Black Panther” star Michael B. Jordan says no.
Speaking at a Black Lives Matter protest in Los Angeles on Saturday, the actor called on Hollywood to “commit to black hiring,” demanding they invest in “black staff” and focus on black stories.
“I want us to invest in black staff,” said Jordan. “I’m proud to have an inclusion rider and all that good stuff and I use my power to demand diversity, but it’s time the studios and agencies — all the agencies, all these buildings that we’re standing in front of … do the same.”
“You committed to a 50/50 gender parity in 2020, where is the challenge to commit to black hiring?” Jordan added. “Black content led by black executives, black consultants. Are you policing our storytelling as well?”
Going forward, Jordan called on the industry to shine more light on the discrimination that black cultural leaders have faced.
“So let us bring our darkness to the light. Black culture. The sneakers, sports, comedic culture that you guys love so much — we’ve dealt with discrimination at every turn. Can you help fund black brands, companies, cultural leaders, black organizations?” Jordan continued. “A great agent doesn’t have to be a great organizer, but a great agent could advocate for relationships with organizers. Will you support a non-profit that’s working to solve problems of our industry, that our industry created?”
According to Variety, the protest was organized outside of Hollywood’s “Big 4” agencies – CAA, UTA, WME, and ICM Partners.
Actor Michael B Jordan speaks to protestors
“Where is the challenge to commit to Black hiring? Black content lead by Black executives, Black consultants.”
(🎥 @producerTommy / @blacklovedoc) #BlackLivesMatter #BlackMediaMatters pic.twitter.com/0yCKwwSGOg— NICK HAMILTON (@NickHamiltonLA) June 6, 2020
Michael B. Jordan has previously advocated for the “Inclusion Rider” initiative and said in 2018 that he will implement it in his production company.
“In support of the women & men who are leading this fight, I will be adopting the Inclusion Rider for all projects produced by my company Outlier Society,” Jordan wrote in an Instagram post.
“I’ve been privileged to work with powerful woman & persons of color throughout my career & it’s Outlier’s mission to continue to create for talented individuals going forward,” he said.
Coined by Dr. Stacy Smith in a 2014 op-ed in The Hollywood Reporter, an inclusion rider dictates that top actors can contractually demand that film projects “reflect the world we actually live in by requiring diversity on screen and behind the camera,” according to HuffPost.
“We are thrilled that Michael B. Jordan has signed on to this effort and committed to the inclusion rider,” Smith told HuffPost in 2018. “He and the members of his team are true leaders. We hope other actors and content creators will follow their lead and make inclusion something that is embedded in all of their projects.”
Actress Gabrielle Union recently said that Hollywood has “so many blind spots” when it comes to diversity in Hollywood.