There were no surprises.
Not a one.
Slumdog Millionaire, Kate Winslet and the late Heath Ledger all won the awards they were expected to win.
So did Sean Penn (Best Actor) and Dustin Lance Black (Best Original Screenplay). Both were honored for Milk.
There was a brief moment when it looked like Mickey Rourke might pull an upset and walk away with the top acting award for The Wrestler. But the final winner honored the Comeback Kid at the end of his speech.
There were two great moments at this year’s Oscar telecast, and both came from the Milk winners.
These are moments that will be remembered for years to come by gay historians, not because of the well deserved wins, but because of what the recipients had to say.
Through his tears, Dustin Lance Black assured young LGBTs that they were OK, and that they deserved to be loved and accepted, no matter what their churches had to say about it. The day would come, Black assured us, when LGBTs would enjoy full federal equality in all things. The audience cheered.
When he accepted his award a few hours later, Sean Penn asked older Americans to look deep into their hearts regarding California’s gay marriage ban (Prop 8).
“For those who saw the signs of hatred as our cars drove in tonight, I think it’s a good time for those who voted for the ban against gay marriage to sit and reflect on their great shame and their shame in their grandchildren’s eyes if they continue that support,” the actor said. Again, the audience cheered.
In spite of the occasional setback, the world is indeed changing.
Rapidly.
And for the better.
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expect the s___ to hit the fan once the fundies hear about this. I totally expect them to rehash the ‘homosexualization of America’ conspiracy theories. Seriously the fundies need psychiatric help for their paranoid delusions.
Comment by adam kautz — February 23, 2009 @ 12:38 pm