Another Oscar has come to an end. There were no surprises in this year's awards, and the awards ceremony itself was limited in topicality, but fortunately there were no accidents or scandals. Except for a little rush when Al Pacino announced the best picture at the last moment, the entire awards ceremony was smooth sailing. However, before the ceremony officially started, there were actually many things going on outside the scene that the global audience could not see.
The main traffic route to the Dolby Theater, where the awards ceremony was held, was blocked by thousands of demonstrators calling for a ceasefire between Palestine and Israel, causing traffic at the intersection of Sunset Boulevard and Highland Avenue to be completely paralyzed for more than 30 minutes. As a result, the vehicles in which many guests were traveling were blocked on the road. Some people had no choice but to get out of the car and walk. The situation was somewhat embarrassing when they finished the last stretch of the journey before entering the venue. The red carpet that was supposed to be star-studded was once strangely empty. The awards ceremony, which was originally scheduled to start at 7 p.m. Eastern Time, was delayed by six minutes before it officially started. As soon as host Jimmy Kimmel took the stage, he reminded: "We are already five minutes overtime."
Based on on-site reports from many American media, the situation around Sunset Boulevard at that time could be described as very chaotic. Although the Los Angeles police had taken proactive security measures earlier for safety reasons, as the demonstrators gathered more and more, small-scale conflicts still occurred. They carried slogans such as "Silence is violence, continue to speak out for Palestine" and "Get the United States out of the Middle East and knock down U.S. imperialism." They shouted at the guests in formal attire who were forced to walk to the venue by shouting something like "Nothing during genocide." "It's time to award awards" and "You're giving awards here, bombs are being dropped over there", criticizing Hollywood people for ignoring the current humanitarian crisis and continuing to sing and dance. It's really a shame and a shame. Some people were even splashed with red paint, and there were vehicles Debris was thrown.
It is reported that the protests were organized by industry and civil society groups such as the Screen Actors Guild Calling for Ceasefire Group, the Los Angeles Writers’ Anti-Gaza War Organization, and the Film Workers Supporting Palestine Organization. Amin El Gamal, an Egyptian actor who has appeared in American TV series such as "Prison Break" and "Trouble", accepted an interview with the on-site media on behalf of the Screen Actors Guild's ceasefire calling group, saying that their protest plan has been Months in the making.
Billie wore an anti-war brooch to the Oscars
Among the guests attending the Oscars were singer Billie Eilish, who just became the youngest person to win two statuettes, Mark Ruffalo, who was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for "Poor Thing" and also starred in The film's Rami Yusuf, actor Riz Ahmed, "Origin" director Ava DuVernay, director of the best live-action short film "The Man Who Stayed" Misan Harriman, The director of the best documentary feature film "The Daughters of Ofa", including Causer Ben Haniere, also wore red brooches with a heart painted on the palm, which means "Artists Call for a Ceasefire".
Brooch close-up
In October 2023, more than 400 entertainers and artists, including Mark Ruffalo, Joaquin Phoenix, Cate Blanchett, Kristen Stewart, and Susan Sarandon, jointly wrote The letter urged US President Biden to demand a ceasefire between Israel and Palestine, and the action organization "Artists Calling for a Ceasefire" came into being. At the Grammy Awards ceremony held in February this year, many musicians already wore red badges representing the organization. Later, at the Screen Actors Guild Awards Ceremony, actor Abon Moore of the American TV series "The Bear's Diner" S-Bakrach also called for peace in the same way.
"We call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza. We call for peace and lasting justice for the Palestinian people." Egyptian actor Rami Yusuf said in an interview with the media on the Oscar red carpet, "The message we want to convey is very Simple: Let's stop killing children, let's stop fighting wars. Many of us are wearing this badge tonight, and the list of artists willing to speak out continues to grow. We are calling for an immediate ceasefire, which has gone on for far too long. The president called for a ceasefire in his State of the Union address, so why hasn't it happened yet? That's what we encourage everyone to stand up and speak out about."
