Olivia Munn, Juju Chang, Richard Lui, Nicco Annon and Brian Tee to Participate in SAG-AFTRA’s “Stop the Hate” Week, to Discuss Discrimination in Entertainment and Journalism

A Livestream and more information is available here.

LOS ANGELES — Today, SAG-AFTRA announced “Stop the Hate” a weeklong series of virtual events to help identify, understand, and combat discrimination in the entertainment and media  industry. This series of panels, presentations, conversations and keynotes led by SAG-AFTRA members and affinity organizations will bring together actors, broadcasters, academics, labor leaders, and  professionals to discuss how to advance equality on screen, in production and recording studios, in the newsroom and throughout the entertainment and media industry.

Leaders from across the industry will speak up, listen and think critically about the issues facing their community. Actors, anchors and reporters join together in one of these critical discussions in partnership with the Asian American Journalists Association to debate the media’s role in helping end hate targeted toward Asian American Pacific Islander in a panel headlined by Newsroom star Olivia Munn, Nightline anchor Juju Chang, MSNBC and NBC News anchor Richard Lui, Chicago Med star Brian Tee, and KGO-TV San Francisco anchor and reporter Dion Lim.

“The buck stops with each of us. Through our highly visible work, people who work in entertainment and the media, our members, have an opportunity to change hearts and minds and build a more equitable and fair society,”  said SAG-AFTRA President, Gabrielle Carteris. “ It will take a commitment from all of us, from the top down and bottom up, to create a more equitable world for everyone. ‘Stop the Hate Week’ will allow each of us a glimpse into someone's experiences with the hope that we'll be able to understand the challenges they face in an effort to determine how to take actionable steps towards change. It is time that the entertainment industry learns from one another, and uses our influential voices to steward an environment of inclusion, fairness and accountability.”

“SAG-AFTRA has advanced diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion in our contracts, programming, and ethics, yet the vestiges of Hollywood’s long history of discrimination remain present,” said National Executive Director of SAG-AFTRA, David White. “We are using this time to bring our members together to focus on what it means to truly and aggressively live into our core belief that our strength is in our diversity.  What does that look like in practice in newsrooms, in casting, on set, in the studio and elsewhere? We must deepen our insight and our action planning. This level of focus is essential if we are to actually root out discriminatory barriers in all its forms.” 

SAG-AFTRA provides continuous support to its members throughout the country, the global labor movement, industry allies, advocacy groups and communities that share similar core visions. The union’s efforts ensure the existence and compliance of equal employment opportunities and mandates in all contract areas, including protections for minors and protection from sexual harassment, which moves the industry towards a diverse and accurate reflection of America.

SAG-AFTRA's Equity & Inclusion efforts include:

• Enforcing and negotiating Non-Discrimination/Affirmative Action provisions in all SAG-AFTRA contracts to ensure that the workplace is free from discrimination and harassment;
• Facilitating a complaint process for members experiencing discrimination and sexual harassment;
• Educating and empowering members about contract and workplace rights;
• Providing information and guidance to producers and casting directors regarding how to write inclusive casting breakdowns as well as referrals to casting resources for performers with disabilities and how to address accessibility issues;
• Advising and consulting with industry professionals on issues of diversity, equal employment opportunities, accessibility and non-discrimination;
• Monitoring legislative and regulatory changes affecting members’ interests and advocates on their behalf.

The union’s eight national diversity committees provide strength in numbers, moral support and a forum for members’ voices to be heard and key strategies developed -- these committees are at the heart of the SAG-AFTRA’s equal employment opportunity and diversity initiatives. SAG-AFTRA constantly informs its members and the entertainment industry on systemic discrimination in the entertainment industry through its programmatic work. Most recently, the union has actively continued discussions to raise awareness about portrayals of and inequities facing historically marginalized communities in the entertainment and media industry through its President’s Task Force on Education, Outreach & Engagement event series and the SAG-AFTRA podcast.

Schedule of Events:

TUESDAY, APRIL 13

LGBTQ Podcast Special Episode Released: Trans Actors on Hollywood

• Gabrielle Carteris (President, SAG-AFTRA)
• Alexandra Grey (Actor, Empire)
• Ian Harvie (Actor and Comedian, Transparent)
• David White (National Executive Director, SAG-AFTRA)

President’s Task Force on Education Outreach & Engagement: The Next Generation of Broadcasters (10:00 a.m. PT)

• Moderated by Bob Butler (SAG-AFTRA National Vice President, Broadcaster and Member, Broadcast Steering Committee)
• Ashley Mackey (Community Journalist and Digital Reporter KABC Los Angeles)
• Nina Moini (Anchor and Reporter, Minnesota Public Radio, St. Paul)
• James Santelli (News Producer, KDKA Pittsburgh)
• Justine Waldman (Anchor and Reporter, KRON San Francisco)

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 14

#StopAsianHate: Journalists & Actors on how the Media Can Support the AAPI Community  (10:30 a.m. PT) –  Asian American Pacific Islander Americans have been the targets of anti-Asian bullying and violence for over a year. In this panel discussion, broadcasters covering the tragic stories along with actors speaking up, join to talk about how the media can help stop the hate.

• Olivia Munn (Actor, The Newsroom, The Predator)
• Moderated by Maira Ansari (Anchor and Reporter, Wave-TV, Louisville)
• Juju Chang (Co-Anchor, Nightline, ABC News)
• Dion Lim (Anchor and Reporter, KGO-TV, San Francisco)
• Richard Lui (Anchor and Journalist, MSNBC/NBC News)
• Brian Tee (Actor, Chicago Med, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift)

THURSDAY, APRIL 15

Welcoming Remarks (9:30 a.m. PT)

• Gabrielle Carteris (President, SAG-AFTRA)
• Rebecca Damon (Executive Vice President, SAG-AFTRA)
• Camryn Manheim (Secretary-Treasurer, SAG-AFTRA)
• Jason George (Diversity Advisory Committee Chair, SAG-AFTRA)
• David White (National Executive Director, SAG-AFTRA)
• Duncan Crabtree-Ireland (Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel, SAG-AFTRA)

Disability Inclusion in Hollywood: (9:45 a.m. PT)  –  A conversation with the Ruderman Family Foundation and other disability inclusion advocates. Additional details to come.

• Jay Ruderman (President and Trustee, Ruderman Family Foundation)
• Additional participants to be added

Seasoned Performers: Senior Representation on Screen (10:30 a.m. PT) – A conversation with award-winning, seasoned actors on how to create systemic change and greater inclusion and opportunities for senior representation that reflects the diversity of the American Scene.

• Moderated by Ellen Crawford (Former SAG-AFTRA National Board Member, Los Angeles Local Board Member)
• Sheri Foster Blake (Actor, The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, U-Turn)
• Kim Estes (Actor, Dicks, Underdog)
• Harry Groener (Actor, About Schmidt, Road To Perdition)
• Geri Jewell (Actor, The Facts of Life, Deadwood)
• Dr. Alma Martinez (Professor and Actor, Gentefied, Clemency)

IllumiNative: Re-Centering Native Americans in the Media (12:45 p.m. PT) – The SAG-AFTRA Native Americans Committee welcomes a discussion with IllumiNative, part of a new generation of Native American / Indigenous non-profits, to discuss their advocacy for the community by using a combination of data, resources, digital networking and vocal support to ensure that the invisibility, stereotypes, and misinformation about Native peoples on screen and in our society are a thing of the past.

• Crystal Echo Hawk (Founder and Executive Director, IllumiNative)
• Princess Daazhraii Johnson (Producer, Molly of Denali and SAG-AFTRA Native Americans Committee member)

Moving from Conversation to Action (1:30 p.m. PT) – In this thought-provoking keynote address, The Female Quotient’s CEO Shelley Zallis will explore the steps the union can take to channel candid conversations into tangible action steps for change.

• Shelley Zallis (CEO, The Female Quotient)

Middle Eastern / North African (MENA) Performers: Hollywood’s Journey to Equity (2:15 p.m. PT) – For far too long, the erasure of multi-dimensional MENA characters has taken a toll on the MENA creative community. In a time of amplified diversity, equity and inclusion, MENA performers and organizations are using ally-ship and data to change the industry and MENA narrative for the better.

• Omid Abtahi (Actor, American Gods, The Mandalorian)
• Yasmine Al-Massri (Actor, Quantico, Caramel)
• Maha Chehlaoui (Founder, Pass the Mic Media and Program Director, Think Tank for Inclusion and Equity)
• Assaf Cohen (Actor, American Sniper, Entourage)
• Moderated by Azita Ghanizada (Actor, Good Trouble, Alphas, and MENA Arts Advocacy Coalition Founder)

FRIDAY, APRIL 16

Discussion: Widen the Screen (9:15 a.m. PT) – Oscar-nominated director Kevin Wilson Jr. used a fresh lens to explore the full richness of the Black experience in a breath-taking Procter & Gamble-sponsored short film project, “Widen the Screen” – a platform that reclaims the beauty of Black life in film. Wilson shares with us how he directed the series, and insight on his experience working with a predominantly Black cast and crew. Wilson will be joined by Al-Teron Williams, one of the featured actors, for this discussion.

• Al-Teron Williams (Actor, Dead of Night, The Bobby Brown Story)
• Kevin Wilson, Jr. (Director, Producer; I’m Fine (Thanks for Asking), My Nephew Emmet)

Normalizing Diversity: Change the Narrative (10:15 a.m. PT) – The time for change is now. Changemakers will share their insights and inspiration for normalizing diversity while working to break down decades-old barriers that have traditionally limited visibility, acceptance and opportunity for the Black community.

• Nicco Annon (Actor, P-Valley, Activist and Choreographer)
• Bree Frank (Founder, HUE You Know)
• Moderated by Jawn Murray (TV Host, Commentator and Pop Culture Expert, Night Crawl New York With Jawn Murray)
• April Reign (VP of Content Strategy, Ensemble; #OscarsSoWhite Creator)

UCLA’s Hollywood Diversity Report Series: Connecting the Dots Between Industry Inclusion and the Bottom Line (11:45 a.m. PT) – This talk will review important takeaways from eight years of annual reports on the state of gender and racial diversity in front of and behind the camera in Hollywood film and television. It will consider the relationship between on-screen diversity and film office and television ratings, and will also consider important best practices for advancing the needle on Hollywood diversity and inclusion.

• Darnell Hunt, PhD. (Dean, UCLA Division of Social Sciences and Professor of Sociology and African American Studies)

Tired of Talk: How Information Can Drive Latino Inclusion (1:15 p.m. PT) – The needle has not moved on Latino inclusion on screen which has hovered around 6% for a community that’s estimated to be nearly 19% of the U.S. population. Media and consumer research company Nielsen will share how the community can turn dismal data into a driver of change, using information and metrics to start a media movement Latinos deserve and earn.

• Stacie de Armas (Senior Vice President, Diverse Insights & Initiatives, Nielsen)
• Michelle C. Bonilla (Actor, NCIS: New Orleans, Clemency, The Casagrandes)

LGBTQ Conversation (2:30 p.m. PT) – Additional details to come

About SAG-AFTRA

SAG-AFTRA represents approximately 160,000 actors, announcers, broadcast journalists, dancers, DJs, news writers, news editors, program hosts, puppeteers, recording artists, singers, stunt performers, voiceover artists and other entertainment and media professionals. SAG-AFTRA members are the faces and voices that entertain and inform America and the world. A proud affiliate of the AFL-CIO, SAG-AFTRA has national offices in Los Angeles and New York and local offices nationwide representing members working together to secure the strongest protections for entertainment and media artists into the 21st century and beyond. Visit SAG-AFTRA online at SAGAFTRA.org.