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Ariana DeBose makes queer acting history
Ariana DeBose made history by winning best supporting actress for “West Side Story,” becoming the first openly queer woman of color and the first Afro Latina to win an Academy Award for acting. DeBose, who plays Anita in Steven Spielberg’s remake of the original 1961 film, follows in the footsteps of Rita Moreno, who became the first Latina Oscar winner for the same role.
During her moving acceptance speech, in which she thanked Moreno for paving the way, DeBose delivered a message directed at her younger self: “When you look into her eyes, you see an openly queer woman of color, an Afro Latina, who found her strength in life through art. And that’s what I believe we’re here to celebrate.”
