Sandy Camargo puts it, "Despite the obvious racism of many of his films, D.
W. Griffith is the man who invented Hollywood. Still." And Hollywood,
despite its obvious bankrupt "artistry", is racist...and sexist. Still.

While Nobel took his riches and endowed a prize for those who seek to push
the envelope of science and art in ways that benefit all of humanity, you
cannot say that Griffith or Hollywood have done anything close to that. The
only envelope pushing Hollywood believes in is purely self-serving. But then
this is a day and age where it's taken over 40 years to correct writing
credits for blacklisted screenwriters and where educators and others blame
"PC stuff " and lament the inadequate "old" rather than stimulate the
creation of an enlightened "new."

Maybe the Guild should keep the Griffith Award just as it is. They have no
right to claim an enlightened state until they themselves lead by their
example, but then I've always opted to recognize substance over technique
only because I rarely get a chance to witness both in balance. But when I do
whether it's Chaucer or Tamahori I find I need the old and the new to
present a balanced picture to my students.

Joe Camacho
Communication Studies

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