Fall out of the Oscars. Meryl Streep ... An African. Am I missing something?

'Okay, all Meryl has to do now is put on some shoe polish and audition for jobs in Hollywood'

 
 Meryl Streep

Meryl Streep, the most admired actress of her generation, fueled Hollywood's diversity controversy on Thursday when she said that all of humanity originated in Africa.
The three-time Oscar winner, who is in Berlin heading up her first international film jury, made the comment at a news conference when she was asked if she was familiar with world cinema, particularly films from Africa and the Middle East.
She said she had recently seen the Jordanian film "Theeb," about a Bedouin boy on a hazardous mission in the desert, and also "Timbuktu," about Islamist militants taking over the fabled Malian city.

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"The thing that I notice is that there is a core of humanity that travels right through every culture," she said. "And after all, we're all from Africa originally, you know. We're all Berliners; we're all Africans, really."


The comments from Streep, who has been Oscar-nominated a record 19 times, made headlines around the world and swiftly became one of the top trends on Twitter.
They followed an uproar over the all-white Oscar acting nominee selection for a second straight year, which forced the movie industry to confront how blacks, Asians and Latinos are represented in front of and behind the camera in Hollywood.
Some commentators on Thursday expressed disappointment.
"You’d think Meryl Streep would be smarter than to say “We’re all Africans, really” in any context, but alas," said @Jamil Smith.

... every one is African, every one wins

 
 Frances Hannon and Mark Coulier accept the Best Makeup & Hairstyling Award for "The Grand Budapest Hotel" at the 87th Annual Academy Awards.
 Photo:Kevin Winter/Getty Images

 ... except these
Photo:Kevin Wnters/Getty Images 

Zoe Saldana and Dwayne Johnson at the 87th Annual Academy Award

"Watch the whole interview before jumping on Meryl Streep," tweeted @evansArmour. "Her quote was taken out of context."
Black Magic Woman's tweet included a poster of Streep's 1985 "Out of Africa" film, where she plays a white land owner. "Now we know Meryl Streep was serious when she made this movie," the tweet said.

 
 Lupita Nyongo at the 87th Annual Academy Awards.


Streep's U.S. representative did not return calls for comment or clarification.
In Berlin, Streep said her seven-member, mainly female jury included a film critic and a photographer and that the panel would have diverse viewpoints.
"We will be looking at different things in these films," she said, "but we're human beings, and film is an emotional experience so ... we're going to make these decisions based on what our heads want to say.
"But we're first attacked by the heart, so that's an interesting process. I'm so looking forward to it." 

... you gotta first try the shoe, scratching my head 


Courtesy: reuters