After taking a year off, the Golden Globe awards show returned to NBC on Tuesday, making its best attempt to appear not racist. However, this year’s host Jerrod Carmichael refused to let them sweep their previous racism accusations under the rug.

In 2021, the 87-person Hollywood Foreign Press Association found itself at the center of a major controversy after it was exposed for having no Black members. As stars denounced the group’s award show, NBC took it off the air in 2022.

In an attempted comeback this year, the ceremony saw the lowest ratings ever on NBC, which were down more than 26% from its last airing in 2021.

However, the HFPA certainly made its best attempts at recovering from a scandal-ridden year. The organization has 21 new members, six of whom are Black. The members also nominated and selected a very diverse list of honorees, in terms of race, gender, and sexual identity.

As if its motivations for including a more diverse group of people weren’t obvious enough, the Golden Globes host, comedian Jerrod Carmichael, gave a very to-the-point speech addressing the race-based reasons he was asked to be on the show.

Comedian Jerrod Carmichael

While opening the show, Carmichael cut to the chase, wasting no time in acknowledging the elephant in the room.

“I’ll tell you why I’m here,” he said. “I’m here ’cause I’m Black.”

Carmichael then covered the reasons for the awards show not airing last year, to inform those in the audience who may not have known. He slammed the HFPA for their previous lack of diversity, saying, “They didn’t have a single Black member until George Floyd died… so, do with that what you will.”

He then described the moment he got the call to host the Golden Globes, saying that he was “invited to be the Black face of an embattled White organization,” admitting that he knew he was only asked to host the show because of the color of his skin.

The comedian also shared that he only agreed to take the job because they paid him a whopping $500,000 to host the show.

Carmichael then joked that he could do whatever he wanted because, as the first Black host on the show in 79 years, he is “unfirable.”

Sadly, what Carmichael says is true. Although he is a very talented comedian and actor, he was likely a main candidate for hosting the show first and foremost because of his race. It just goes to show how Hollywood preaches diversity and inclusivity, yet does not live up to their own expectations until they are called out for not living up to its own standards.

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