One of the more poignant moments of the Golden Globes included Chadwick Boseman’s widow, Taylor Simone Ledward, accepting Boseman’s posthumous award for Best Actor in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

“He would thank his parents. He would thank his ancestors for their guidance and their sacrifices,” Ledward said through tears. “…He would say something beautiful, something inspiring, something that would amplify that little voice inside of us that tells you you can, that tells you to keep going, that calls you back to what you’re meant to be doing in this moment in history.”

Ledward also said Boseman would thank his team, which included his agent Michael Greene and close inner circle including makeup designer Siân Richards, hair designer Deidra Dixon, personal costumer and Craig Anthony. Ledward also mentioned his co-star Viola Davis and Denzel Washington, who served as the film’s producer, among the people Boseman would thank in his acceptance speech.

Watch Chadwick Boseman’s wife, Taylor Simone Ledward, accept the late actor’s #GoldenGlobes win https://t.co/gMrpbjjqwe pic.twitter.com/Wx1jjdugXU

— Variety (@Variety) March 1, 2021

The HFPA, the governing body of the Golden Globes, has been under intense scrutiny since January when the organization released its nominations for the awards ceremony. The nomination process including head-scratching decisions such as placing Minari, an American-made movie about a Korean-American family starring American actor Steven Yeun, in the foreign film category, and not nominating Lee for Best Director for Da 5 Bloods, despite his children Jackson and Satchel Lee being Golden Globes ambassadors. A report by the Los Angeles Times also revealed how the organization places exorbitant fees on its 87 members for taking part in the organization, such as moderating panels and joining committees. The report also reveals how the organization has failed to recruit a single Black journalist among its ranks, prompting a hashtag movement #TimesUpGlobes.

Further scrutiny has come amid anecdotal stories of how the HFPA’s nomination process is influenced by brown-nosing, such as members being courted through lavish dinners, set trips, swag and more. The HFPA addressed the criticisms during the Golden Globes, pledging to add Black journalists to its roster, but Time’s Up President criticized the HFPA and NBC in an open letter posted by The Hollywood Reporter, stating that simply adding Black journalists is “cosmetic” and addresses “a symptom of a problem, not just the problem itself.”

Simone Ledward

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