Watch Eddie Murphy Take On #OscarsSoWhite Before There Were Hashtags

This year’s lack of diversity among the Academy Awards nominees, stunning even by the Oscars’ standards, has caused outrage again, and the #OscarsSoWhite hashtag again, and calls for a former Saturday Night Live castmember-turned superstar to skip their role in the show. As an illustration of how little has changed over the years, as well as just how narrow paths to stardom can be for black performers, Oscar host Chris Rock finds himself in the exact same position Eddie Murphy was in 28 years ago when he was tapped to present the Best Picture award.

There were no hashtags in those days, but Murphy felt enough pressure that he devoted a good chunk of his presentation speech to explaining why he had decided to do the awards show anyway. Besides thinking to yourself “Fatal Attraction was up for Best Picture?”, listen to Murphy’s ironic conclusion:

I just feel that we have to be recognized as a people. I just want you to know that I’m going to give this award, but black people will not ride the caboose of society, and we will not bring up the rear anymore. I want you to recognize us.

Maybe Rock could read Murphy’s speech word-for-word, then reveal to the audience that it was written 28 years ago.

Murphy’s prediction of a 2004 win was pretty damn close, as it was 2001 before a black actor would win a major category. Murphy himself lost a Best Supporting Actor Oscar in 2007 for Dreamgirls, which some consider payback for his act of defiance.

Now, we’ve got a hashtag, though, so things should be looking up.

This is an opinion piece. The views expressed in this article are those of just the author.