Actor John Leguizamo ran a full-page ad in Sunday’s edition of The New York Times asking Emmy voters to choose non-White nominees.
“I know everyone is exhausted about inclusion but not us who are not included. So that’s why I took this ad out in the NYTimes,” Leguizamo wrote on X, alongside two pictures of his advertisement.
The liberal actor said White people are overrepresented in top positions across tech, banking, medicine, streaming and Hollywood.
“America is better when it is inclusive. It is more profitable. It is more creative! Let’s not give up. I’m still woke! Are you?” he wrote.
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John Leguizamo took out a full-page advertisement in The New York Times to push for more diversity in the candidates chosen to be nominated for the Emmy Awards. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Jerod Harris/Variety via Getty Images)
Leguizamo’s advertisement came in the form of a giant “Open Letter to The Television Academy.” He urged voters to see artists of color represented across all categories.
“I know you’re tired of hearing words like ‘inclusivity’ and ‘diversity’ – treading water while you try to understand how to put actions behind these sentiments,” he wrote.
Leguizamo’s letter noted that hundreds of prolific non-White artists deserve to be considered for awards, not because of their ethnicity but because they have “achieved greatness with a foot on their neck for too long.”
“Let this be the start of a new era,” he wrote. “Let us not continue to whitewash our award shows. Instead, let this year be the catalyst that inspires the next generation of minority and underrepresented artists… a generation who might finally see a reflection of themselves on that stage and think… ‘If they can, maybe I can too.'”
Concerns about award show diversity have been a significant topic in Hollywood for years.
The Los Angeles Times reported that from 2015 to 2019, 82% of the nominees across 19 Emmy categories were White.
Actor John Leguizamo arrives to AARP The Magazine’s 14th Annual Movies For Grownups Awards Gala at the Beverly Wilshire Four Seasons Hotel on February 2, 2015 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images)
Leguizamo has been an most outspoken liberal voice on social and political issues in Hollywood over the last several years.
In a May interview with Salon, the “Ice Age” and “Super Mario Bros.” actor said Latino Americans do not understand that former President Trump was really the person who damaged the economy, not President Biden.
“Because Latinos, they’re blaming him [Biden] for the economy, which they shouldn’t be because COVID was the culprit and Trump not handling COVID was the culprit in damaging our economy.”
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Leguizamo, who has been a Trump critic for years, expressed frustration over the former president building support among Latinos earlier this year. While guest hosting Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show” in April, the actor punched a piñata on air in response to the recent polls.
During another stint as guest host in November, Leguizamo raged against Univision for hosting an interview with Trump that month.
Leguizamo did not return Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Fox News’ Gabriel Hays contributed to this report.