Oscar comment shows reforms needed in U.S.

At the 87th Academy Awards, a television event viewed by 37 million people, Sean Penn joked, “Who gave this son of a b-tch a green card?” shortly before awarding the director of Birdman, Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu, the Oscar for Best Picture. Penn’s short-sighted joke annoyed most people and caused a rather significant frenzy on Twitter, with journalist Derrick Clifton tweeting, “#OscarsSoWhite A director of color can’t accept an Oscar without being the butt of a racist joke. #Oscars2015.”

Penn’s remark was uncalled-for, especially when immigration reform in the U.S. still has a long journey ahead. President Barack Obama’s executive actions on immigration have been halted by a district court in Texas. The president’s actions would have protected 5 million of the approximately 11 million undocumented immigrants who live with the fearful possibility of deportation. On Feb. 23, the Obama administration requested a “stay” to delay the decision to block the executive action. The president’s immigration policy, as WhiteHouse.gov states, will crack down on illegal immigration at the border, deport felons and check criminal backgrounds for eligibility to stay in the country. Amid the controversial debate over immigration, Penn should have recognized the comment’s innappropriate nature.

But despite the outrageous “joke,” Iñárritu kindly responded in the Oscar press room, “I found it hilarious … When I was directing him in 21 Grams, he was always making jokes like that.” Inarritu’s speech after receiving his award was even more heartwarming: “I want to dedicate this award to my fellow Mexicans, the ones who live in Mexico. I pray that we can find and build the government that we deserve. And the ones living in this country who are part of the latest generation of immigrants in this country, I just pray that they can be treated with the same dignity and respect as the ones who came before and built this incredible immigrant nation.”

Many believe Iñárritu’s speech was directed toward the Mexican government, which is facing an economic standstill on top of gang violence that has killed thousands of its people. Mexico has been on a downward spiral since the Ayotzinapa tragedy in September 2014. Forty-three students from a rural teachers college were traveling to Iguala in the Guerrero state to attend a march commemorating a 1968 student massacre, where, coincidentally, Mayor Jose Luis Abarca’s wife, Maria de los Angeles Pineda, planned to give a speech. The students’ bus was intercepted en route by the police and taken to Guerreros Unidos (United Warriors), a criminal organization. On Jan. 27, President Enrique Pena Nieto declared all 43 missing students dead.

With one joke, Penn managed to reveal the cruel reality of immigrant hate crimes. It shows the vulnerability with which immigrants live, regardless of their social status. In some ways, we have Penn to thank for accidentally bringing to light the debate over immigration on national television. Because Penn’s incomprehensibly absurd comment has caused outrage and negative responses from the public, the unity of the American people against mocking immigrants has become prominent. Without Penn’s joke, Inarritu’s amazing speech acknowledging the sensitive concern for a green card might not have been sparked.

In the end, Penn’s remark unintentionally provoked the public to agree that immigration is not a joking matter. It led Inarritu to give a speech that empowered the Mexican people to speak even louder against their static government, and it ultimately raised awareness on an issue entangled in legal dispute over the fate of 11 million people.

So thank you, Sean Penn, for bringing attention to an important issue to 37 million people in the U.S. and 200 other countries.