JusticeForFlint

File:TheWhiting,SPOTLIGHTS.JPG in Flint, Michigan]]

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Ava DuVernay and Ryan Coogler

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#JusticeForFlint was a charity event held on February 28, 2016, addressing the ongoing Flint water crisis in the U.S. state of Michigan. With the victims of the lead poisoning being predominantly black, the political scandal has been regarded as an example of racial inequalities in the U.S., and the charity event has been associated with the Black Lives Matter campaign.

Initiated by Creed director Ryan Coogler and Selma director Ava DuVernay, the free public event was held at the Whiting Auditorium in Flint, Michigan. Hosted by comedian Hannibal Buress, it featured singers Janelle Monáe and Ledisi, as well as actor-activists Jesse Williams and Jussie Smollett, amongst others.{{cite web |author=Victoria M. Massie |title=Ava DuVernay and Ryan Coogler are hosting #JusticeForFlint benefit concert. Here's why it matters. |publisher=Vox |url=https://www.vox.com/2016/2/27/11125912/JusticeForFlint-concert-Oscars |date=February 28, 2016 |access-date=February 28, 2016}} Surprising star guest was "King of Motown" Stevie Wonder, who teamed up with Monáe for "Hell You Talkin' Bout", a protest song she had written for the people of Flint.{{cite news |author=Rochelle Riley |title=Stars gather to shine spotlight on Flint crisis |newspaper=Detroit Free Press |url=http://www.freep.com/story/news/columnists/rochelle-riley/2016/02/28/riley-stars-gather-shine-spotlight-flint-crisis/81088074/ |date=February 28, 2016 |access-date=February 29, 2016}}

Coinciding with the 88th Academy Awards ceremony, the event drew considerable attention after the Academy faced unprecedented criticism in early 2016 for its lack of diversity in this year's nomination.{{cite web |author=Nico Lang |title=Oscar snubs that hurt: The Academy Awards still aren't designed for anyone who isn't white, straight, and male |work=Salon |url=http://www.salon.com/2016/01/14/oscar_snubs_that_hurt_the_academy_awards_still_arent_designed_for_anyone_who_isnt_white_straight_and_male/ |date=January 14, 2016 |access-date=January 20, 2016}} The event was further propagated on social media using the #JusticeForFlint hashtag, and live-streamed by Sean Combs' Revolt.tv network.

So far, the fund has raised $156,000.[http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2016/03/justice_for_flint_benefit_show.html Justice for Flint benefit show raises $156,000 for water crisis relief Justice for Flint benefit show raises $156,000 for water crisis relief] The Flint Journal via MLive, March 1, 2016

Background

=''Oscars so white'' controversy=

{{see also|88th Academy Awards#Criticism regarding lack of diversity}}

After not a single black actor or filmmaker was nominated in any of the major categories and with Hispanic filmmakers again only being represented by Alejandro González Iñárritu,{{cite news |author=Tim Gray |title=Academy Nominates All White Actors for Second Year in Row |work=Variety |publisher=Penske Media Corporation |url=https://variety.com/2016/biz/news/oscar-nominations-2016-diversity-white-1201674903/ |date=January 14, 2016 |access-date=January 18, 2016}} the awards were criticized by celebrities including George Clooney{{cite news |author=Julia Brucculieri |title=George Clooney Thinks The Oscars Are 'Moving In The Wrong Direction' |work=The Huffington Post |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/george-clooney-oscars-diversity-problem_us_569e8054e4b00f3e98630c5c |date=January 19, 2016 |access-date=January 21, 2016}} and U.S. President Barack Obama, who asked "Are we making sure that everybody is getting a fair shot?"{{cite news |author=Avery Miller |title=Obama Weighs in on Oscars Diversity Debate, Super Bowl |publisher=ABC News |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/obama-weighs-oscar-diversity-debate-super-bowl/story?id=36555716 |date=January 27, 2016 |access-date=January 28, 2016}} Coogler's widely praised film Creed earned just a single nomination for Sylvester Stallone in the Best Supporting Actor category, while it was the great winner at the recent Black Reel Awards, where it earned a total of five awards, including Best Film, Best Director (for Coogler), and Best Actor (for Michael B. Jordan).{{cite news |title="Creed" Takes Top Honors at 16th Annual Black Reel Awards |agency=ABC News Radio |work=WBT |url=http://wbt.com/creed-takes-top-honors-at-16th-annual-black-reel-awards/ |date=February 19, 2016 |access-date=February 28, 2016 |archive-date=March 8, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160308063121/http://wbt.com/creed-takes-top-honors-at-16th-annual-black-reel-awards/ |url-status=dead }}

A number of celebrities including Will Smith, Best Original Song nominee Antony Hegarty,{{cite web |author=Tim Jonze |title=Oscars 2016: Anohni boycotts 'degrading' ceremony |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/feb/26/anohni-boycotts-oscars-ceremony-transgender-diversity |date=February 26, 2016 |access-date=February 27, 2016}} Jussie Smollett,{{cite web |author=Lior Zaltzman |title=Jewish 'Empire' Star Ditches Oscars for #JusticeForFlint |work=The Forward |url=http://forward.com/the-assimilator/334372/jewish-empire-star-ditches-oscars-for-justiceforflint/ |date=January 28, 2016 |access-date=January 29, 2016}} and Spike Lee declared they would boycott this year's Academy Awards ceremony, some of them attending Ryan Coogler's charity event Justice for Flint instead.{{cite web |author=Lindsey Bahr |title=Black Celebrities Attend Justice For Flint Event Instead of (So White) Oscars |work=The Skanner |url=http://www.theskanner.com/entertainment/theater-movies/23582-black-celebrities-attend-justice-for-flint-event-instead-of-so-white-oscars |date=February 28, 2016 |access-date=February 28, 2016}} Coogler however supported the nominated Sylvester Stallone to stand up for the film, attending the Academy Awards ceremony.{{cite news |author=Josh Rottenberg |title=Ryan Coogler and Ava DuVernay set to attend Flint benefit on Oscar night |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/showtracker/la-et-mn-ryan-coogler-ava-duvernay-flint-benefit-oscar-night-20160223-story.html |date=February 23, 2016 |access-date=February 29, 2016}}

The event's organizers insisted on the timing being a mere coincidence, with Coogler explaining the date was chosen because it falls on the last weekend of this year's Black History Month. Nevertheless, the event has been regarded as an alternative for those disappointed with this year's Oscars.{{cite web |author=Crystal Bell |title=If you're tired of watching white actors accept Oscars, Ryan Coogler is hosting something more important |publisher=MTV News |url=http://www.mtv.com/news/2744224/ryan-coogler-justice-for-flint-oscars/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160226092108/http://www.mtv.com/news/2744224/ryan-coogler-justice-for-flint-oscars/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 26, 2016 |date=February 23, 2016 |access-date=February 28, 2016}} In an interview with Katie Couric, co-initiator DuVernay said: "I guess I can see how people are making the connection, but we didn’t have anything to do that night. We were free. We are basically saying on this night, there are other things going on around issues of justice and dignity."{{cite web |author=Alex Bregman |title=Ava DuVernay on the Oscars controversy and the crisis in Flint, Mich. |url=https://www.yahoo.com/katiecouric/ava-duvernay-on-the-oscars-controversy-and-the-161237070.html |publisher=Yahoo News |date=February 26, 2016 |access-date=February 28, 2016}}

=The Flint Water Crisis, a "racial crime"=

Referring to the Flint water crisis as "a trauma that has been going on there for several years," co-initiator Ava DuVernay said they wanted to "shed a light and amplify the voices on the ground there in Flint." Inviting the people of Flint to "a night of empowerment and enlightenment and community-building and togetherness," she asked people watching the concert on the Revolt.tv livestream to donate to the people of Flint. In explicit agreement with her director colleague Michael Moore, raised in Flint, who called the crisis a "racial crime," DuVernay said: “I think it's environmental racism, absolutely. We wouldn’t have seen this problem if this was in a community with more voice.”

The lead poisoning scandal, dubbed by critics a "contamination of a U.S. city by its own government", result of a cost-cutting measure by Michigan governor Rick Snyder's administration, only leaked out when separate studies by Hurley Medical Center pediatrician Mona Hanna-Attisha and Virginia Tech Professor Marc Edwards publicly challenged the state’s botched findings. Since her election in November 2015, Flint's new mayor Karen Weaver helped bringing the scandal to a national spotlight{{cite web |author=Jamil Smith |title=Why Flint was the place to be on Oscar night |publisher=MTV News |url=http://www.mtv.com/news/2744224/ryan-coogler-justice-for-flint-oscars/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160226092108/http://www.mtv.com/news/2744224/ryan-coogler-justice-for-flint-oscars/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 26, 2016 |date=February 29, 2016 |access-date=February 29, 2016}}