Ahead of Academy Awards, Quincy Jones Says He Wants U.S. to Appoint ‘Minister of Culture’ to Ease Race Issues

[WestVirginiaRebel]

Blaze:

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Quincy Jones wants to talk about diversity, just not on the Oscar show.

 

The 82-year-old Oscar, Grammy and Emmy winner says he agreed to appear on Sunday’s Academy Awards on the condition that he can address the film academy’s Board of Governors to discuss inclusivity and the future of film.

 

Some news reports suggested he intended to deliver a diversity message to the global Oscar audience.

 

The composer and producer, who earned seven Oscar nods before receiving the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in 1994 and producing the Academy Awards in 1996, said Saturday that he met with academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs and plans to speak to the organization’s other officials in the coming weeks.

 

“I hope I can continue to inspire people to do something about this stuff,” Jones said in an interview with The Associated Press after rehearsing for his Oscar appearance. “I’m not a politician. I just know that it’s very emotional. It’s about opening the doors.”

 

He did not offer any specific plans for how to solve the entertainment industry’s race and gender problems. But he encourages an open mind and an eye for excellence.

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The Ministry of Diversity?