In video, Yanomami leader offers alternate statuette to Oscar nominees
Actors and actresses nominated for the 2023 Academy Awards were sent a warning on social media about the dangers of illegal gold mining on indigenous lands. The ceremony was held Sunday (Mar. 12) in Los Angeles.
The alert is part of a campaign called Custo do Ourto (“The Cost of Gold”), which proposes the exchange of the 24-karat gold statuette for the wooden figurine of a hero who symbolizes the protection of the Yanomami indigenous people.
In a video, Junior Hekurari, head of the Urihi Yanomami Association, draws the attention of Hollywood stars to the fight against illegal mining and the environmental damage caused by metal extraction—which leads to mercury spills in rivers, deforestation, and the contamination of fish and indigenous people.
“One of the greatest symbols of success—the Oscar—may soon be in your hands. However, this token comes at a much greater price for our people. So I come to offer a different statuette, the statuette of our hero. Omama is the creator and warrior of the Amazon and of the Yanomami people. Omama symbolizes protection. But even Omama needs allies in the fight against illegal gold and its cost to our people and our land,” says the leader.
Humanitarian crisis
In January, the humanitarian crisis affecting the communities in the Yanomami territory in North Brazil, led the government to declare a public health emergency of national importance to address the lack of health care for the people living in the region.
