ABQ Times

In a recent episode of "It’s (Probably) Not Rocket Science," students and faculty from a University of New Mexico Constitutional Law class proposed a change to the Oscars' gender-based award categories. The project, which began as a class assignment in Professor Lawrence Jones’ course, has gained momentum since its inception in the fall of 2023.

The students created a 99-page presentation and proposal addressed to the President and Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Their work questions the legal and social implications of maintaining separate gender categories for awards at the Oscars. They advocate for an official Academy Task Force to further investigate this issue.

Senior Abigail McCoy, who contributed significantly to the project, expressed surprise at how it evolved from its initial stages. “Professor Jones kind of ran us through the syllabus and what was expected of us… he briefly mentioned the possibility of turning it into something bigger, but that was way in the future, and I wasn’t too worried about it,” McCoy stated. “It’s progressed into a lot more than I was expecting.”

Jones highlighted that his students explored historical aspects of gender segregation in award categories, noting that women were denied voting rights until shortly before the first Academy Awards. He said, “We keep in mind historically that women didn’t even have the right to vote in this country until maybe six or seven years before the first Academy Awards. Men dominated the film industry at the time, and it [separate award categories] may not have been for the purpose of helping women but kind of segregating women in the acting field.”

McCoy believes that societal shifts warrant reconsideration of these traditions: “This is probably something that could have happened earlier... But I think it’s coming to the point where our society has shifted so much and evolved so much, and it’s about time that they should consider changing their traditions to be more inclusive.”

The proposal does not explicitly call for integrating acting categories into gender-neutral awards but emphasizes examining legal and social complexities related to such changes.

UNM students and faculty will continue following developments as they await potential responses from Hollywood's decision-makers while preparing for another Oscar ceremony on March 2nd with Conan O’Brien hosting.

"It’s (Probably) Not Rocket Science" can be accessed on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or other platforms.