This past weekend, Nora Lum, also known as Awkwafina, became the first woman of Asian descent to win a Golden Globe in a lead actress category for her role in dramatic comedy film “The Farewell.” This is a huge step for Asian American representation at the Golden Globes, but why did it take so long to get here?
In this year alone, she and Ramy Youssef were the only two people of color to win Golden Globes, and the awards show has a history of not giving wins to Asian actresses. In total, only twelve people of Asian descent have won awards at the Golden Globes in it’s 77-year history. However, over 50 have received nominations.
Last year, Sandra Oh became the first Asian American woman to host the Golden Globe Awards ceremony, stating that “[she] said yes to the fear of being on this stage tonight because [she] wanted to be here to look out into this audience and witness this moment of change.”
Oh is also the first Asian American woman to win multiple Golden Globes, both being from different categories. She is the first woman of Asian descent to win more than one Golden Globe with a 2006 win for her supporting role in “Grey’s Anatomy” and a 2019 award for her role in “Killing Eve.”
There are some categories that haven’t seen an Asian woman nominee in decades. The last Asian American actress to win a Golden Globe for best actress in a T.V. drama was Yoko Shimada in 1981 for her role in “Shogun”.
Awkwafina stated that she watched the Golden Globes every year growing up, and that “if I would have seen someone like me up there it would have been different.” Children, especially young girls, need to see people that look like them winning awards in the media. It can be very disheartening to not see your race or gender being equally represented in Hollywood.
While nominations of Asian American women for their roles in films and T.V. are a step in the right direction, it is winning those awards that will lead Hollywood away from its traditional white standard.
Kevin Winter / Getty Images
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Golden Globes Still Lacks Proper Representation of Asian Women
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This past weekend, Nora Lum, also known as Awkwafina, became the first woman of Asian descent to win a Golden Globe in a lead actress category for her role in dramatic comedy film “The Farewell.” This is a huge step for Asian American representation at the Golden Globes, but why did it take so long to get here?
In this year alone, she and Ramy Youssef were the only two people of color to win Golden Globes, and the awards show has a history of not giving wins to Asian actresses. In total, only twelve people of Asian descent have won awards at the Golden Globes in it’s 77-year history. However, over 50 have received nominations.
Last year, Sandra Oh became the first Asian American woman to host the Golden Globe Awards ceremony, stating that “[she] said yes to the fear of being on this stage tonight because [she] wanted to be here to look out into this audience and witness this moment of change.”
Oh is also the first Asian American woman to win multiple Golden Globes, both being from different categories. She is the first woman of Asian descent to win more than one Golden Globe with a 2006 win for her supporting role in “Grey’s Anatomy” and a 2019 award for her role in “Killing Eve.”
There are some categories that haven’t seen an Asian woman nominee in decades. The last Asian American actress to win a Golden Globe for best actress in a T.V. drama was Yoko Shimada in 1981 for her role in “Shogun”.
Awkwafina stated that she watched the Golden Globes every year growing up, and that “if I would have seen someone like me up there it would have been different.” Children, especially young girls, need to see people that look like them winning awards in the media. It can be very disheartening to not see your race or gender being equally represented in Hollywood.
While nominations of Asian American women for their roles in films and T.V. are a step in the right direction, it is winning those awards that will lead Hollywood away from its traditional white standard.