Print this article
The organization that oversees the annual Golden Globe Awards ceremony removed a 44-year member and former president after he shared an article that called the Black Lives Matter organization racist.
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association removed Philip Berk this week for sharing an article via email that called Black Lives Matter a “racist hate movement” and said it is carrying on [Charles] Manson s work.
“Effective immediately, Phil Berk is no longer a member of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association,” the group said in a Tuesday statement, according to the
Los Angeles Times.
Berk, 88, reportedly sent the email to association members and staff, as well as the group’s general counsel and chief operating officer, Gregory Goeckner, the outlet reported on Sunday.
Golden Globes organisers expel ex-president over Black Lives Matter email
Published
image captionPhilip Berk has served eight one-year terms as president of body behind the Golden Globes
The organisation behind Hollywood s Golden Globe Awards has expelled its former president over an article he shared about Black Lives Matter.
Philip Berk, 88, had been a member of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) for 44 years and its president for eight years.
In a group email with HFPA members, Berk reportedly shared an article that described BLM as a racist hate group .
He told members he had forwarded it as a point of information , according to the paper.
Berk, an eight-term association president, fell under heavy scrutiny after he sent an email Sunday criticizing Black Lives Matter co-founder Patrisse Cullors. The South African-born Berk shared an article that called Black Lives Matter a “racist hate movement” and described Cullors as a “self-proclaimed trained Marxist,” according to a report from the Los Angeles Times.
The email was sent to HFPA members, staff and the group’s general counsel and chief operating officer.
Berk had been a member of the organization for more than 40 years.
Shaun Harper, who was hired as a diversity strategist advisor by the HFPA last month, said in a resignation letter that he was initially optimistic when he joined the organization, but he felt compelled to step down after learning about the group s “deep systemic and reputational challenges.
Globes group ousts former president over Black Lives Matter email cbc.ca - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from cbc.ca Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
LOGIN
HFPA’s Diversity and Inclusion Adviser Quits After Ava DuVernay, Publicists Reveal ‘Systemic’ Challenges in Group
USC professor Shaun Harper says it is “impossible” for him to continue in the role after meeting with leaders of Time’s Up, Hollywood publicists and Color of ChangeDaniel Goldblatt | April 20, 2021 @ 7:37 PM Last Updated: April 20, 2021 @ 8:31 PM
Getty
The crisis around the Hollywood Foreign Press Association deepened significantly on Tuesday as two of the organization’s diversity experts quit after a day of scandal in which a former president was exposed for writing a racist email.
Shaun Harper, a professor at USC hired last month by the HFPA to serve as a diversity and inclusion adviser, quit following a meeting on Tuesday with representatives from Time’s Up – including Tina Tchen and filmmaker Ava DuVernay – Color of Change and several heads of publicity firms who represent the group that recently boycotted the HFPA