9. It is 'Overwhelmingly White'.
Inequality naturally manifested itself within the Academy's ranks as a result of mirroring society. During the early stages of the membership's existence, a patriarchal society actively discouraged women from directorial and editorial roles; racial inequality was prevalent until the introduction of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. How, then, could the Academy Awards ever hope to offer equal chances to the filmmaking community? In 1939, Hattie McDaniel was awarded the Oscar for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her performance of Mammy in Gone With the Wind; she became the first African-American to win an Academy Award. In a rather moving speech, Fay Bainter presented McDaniel with the award, detailing symbolism the Oscar represented: In 1964, Sidney Poitier became the first African-American male to win Best Actor in a Leading Role for his role in Lilies of the Field and the only black male to win the award for 38 years; Denzel Washington later won the award in 2002 for his performance in Training Day. Although equality has made a vast improvement in contemporary society, a 2012 study of the Academy Awards
revealed that the membership is still 'overwhelmingly white'. With only 2% of the entire Academy African-American and even less members of Latino origin.