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French Actress’s Diversity Plea at César Awards Sparks Political Backlash
Monday 2 March 2020, by
Actress Aïssa Maïga chose the stage of the 45th Césars ceremony to launch an appeal for diversity in French cinema. A plea that was not to the liking of Nadine Morano, a former French minister, who violently attacked her on Twitter.
Invited to present the award for best female newcomer on February 28, 2020, at the 45th César ceremony, actress Aïssa Maïga, 44, chose to make a plea on the lack of diversity in French cinema.
On the stage of the Salle Pleyel, the actress of Senegalese origin said: "We are a family, we tell each other everything, don’t we?", before starting to count the number of black actresses and actors present. "I’ve always been able to count, on the fingers of one hand, the number of non-whites," she added.
With this cheerful but slightly more serious tone, the actress, at the initiative of the #BlackCesars, thus points to "the invisibility of actors, directors and producers" from the overseas departments and territories, African and Asian immigration. She thus joins the ranks of many other actors who, during the past week, have made the same plea in a column.
The 5-minute intervention by actress Aïssa Maïga, which has recorded more than three million views, has provoked many reactions, including those of Nadine Morano. In a tweet, she wrote: "If you’re not happy to see so many whites in France, then go back to Africa! Are there 50% whites in African films?"
Other reactions of this kind have flooded the web since Saturday, and it has become a clash between internet users embracing the fight of colored actors and those finding that they are exaggerating in wanting to demand an impossible thing.