English actor Idris Elba is back in the news, this time it’s not about his collaboration with African studios but rather the 50-year old actor has explained his stance on being addressed as a black actor.
After much debate online, Idris Elba cleared the air saying, his job isn’t about race. The actor’s original quote in Esquire magazine read “I stopped describing myself as a Black actor when I realized it put me in a box.”
With roots in Ghana and Sierra Leone, the multi-award-winning actor earlier said “As humans, we are obsessed with race. And that obsession can really hinder people’s aspirations, hinder people’s growth. Racism should be a topic for discussion, sure. Racism is very real. But from my perspective, it’s only as powerful as you allow it to be. We’ve got to grow. We’ve got to. Our skin is no more than that: It’s just skin.”
The one time People magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive has now reacted to the criticism that followed the earlier statement saying “There isn’t a soul on this earth that can question whether I consider myself a BLACK MAN or not. Being an ‘actor’ is a profession, like being an ‘architect’ ,they are not defined by race.” He added, “However, If YOU define your work by your race, that is your perogative. Ah lie?”
Recall that Morgan Freeman once said the best way to get rid of racism was to stop talking about it and people thought that was controversial. For Idris, he’s made it clear he’ll rather inspire both black and white kids who grew up under the same circumstances as he did to do it for themselves.