Fans of legendary author Neil Gaiman can enter to win signed copies of some of his most beloved books by donating to the Lenny Henry Centre for Media Diversity at Birmingham City University.
According to the official Crowdfunder page, individuals who donate to the Diversity in Media campaign will be entered to win special copies of Coraline, Neverwhere and American Gods. The campaign has a target goal of £5,000 (approximately $6500) and will close on April 21; at time of writing, £1,280 has been donated by 68 supporters.
The Lenny Henry Centre for Media Diversity's goal is to create a better and more inclusive television and film industry. The organization's work and research have "revealed the racism actors face when they go to auditions," "exposed the lack of gender diversity of sound recordists" and "showed the specific problems for disabled people working in the industry." The Centre not only focuses on bringing awareness to these issues but also on developing and exploring practical solutions as well.
Diversity in the entertainment industry has become a central aspect of the cultural zeitgeist, with many individuals from both inside and outside the industry leveraging heavy criticism. In recent times, Disney's live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast was promoted as having the company's first openly gay character in the form of LeFou, but many described the character as lackluster representation, including LeFou's actor Josh Gad. Similarly, some have called out Disney's recent release, Better Nate Than Ever, for never using the word "gay" despite being a story about a gay teenager finding his place in the world, and Moon Knight's director Mohammed Diab described DC's new movie, Black Adam, as a wasted opportunity for good Egyptian representation in film.
However, there have also been changes happening in the entertainment industry. Elliot Page recently posted a photo of his character from the upcoming Season 3 of The Umbrella Academy with the caption "Meet Viktor Hargreeves," indicating the character like the actor is transgender. Page came out publicly as transgender and nonbinary in December 2020.
Moreover, Requiem of the Rose, a retelling of William Shakespeare's plays Richard III and Henry VI that premiered as part of the Winter 2022 anime season, features one of the medium's very few examples of an intersex character in the form of protagonist Richard III. The story not only interrogates and explores Richard's struggles with identity and body but also his complicated, romantic feelings for Henry.
Source: Crowdfunder