First I'd like to say congrats to Mo'Nique for winning an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Now that I got that out the way, let me keep it real.

It amazes me that "we" feel the need for acceptance from "The Academy" b.k.a. "them" for work we do in motion pictures. Granted, this is a very prestigious award, but do we need it? Do we need to degrade ourselves and our community by accepting roles that exploit our people or our situations for a damn piece of metal mounted on a plaque? Is that was success is all about? Still slaves eating from the "man's" table. It's disgusting to me how "we" as Black people think we are making strides and achievements because we are acknowledged by "them." As if to say the acceptance we receive in our own communities isn't enough. Did Denzel not already have a blossoming career before Training Day, Halle before Monster's Ball and now Mo'Nique. I understand a movie like "Soul Plane" is not deserving of anything but the $5 bin at Wal-Mart, but be for real. Had that movie been about anything else but painting the ugly in our world she wouldn't have even received a nod from anybody.

I'm not trying to kill her moment because I'm happy that a Black person gets acknowledgement from any organization, but I am not happy with the real reason behind it. Some people may say this is what she needs to catapult her career. Some may even say that with that award, even a nomination, she will have a grander scale to work on. I say that she already has her own show, her own brand. She is an "okay" actress, but was her role in Precious really that hard to pull off?

To me this was just a reminder from "The Establishment" that we will always get recognized for exploiting ourselves...congrats Mo'Nique. (AJ)

The views and opinions expressed here are totally of the author and are not a representation of "Tha Edge" or it's affiliates.

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