Best foreign film winner Asghar Farhadi’s Oscar acceptance speech

It’s a great honor to be receiving this valuable award for the second time, the statement began. I’m sorry I’m not with you tonight. My absence is out of respect for the people of my country and those of [the] other six nations who have been disrespected by the inhumane law that bans entry to immigrants to the U.S. dividing the world into the us’ and ‘our enemies’ categories creates fear, a deceitful justification for aggression and war. These wars prevent democracy and human rights in countries which have themselves have been victims of aggression. Filmmakers can turn their cameras to capture human qualities and break stereotypes of various nationalities and religions. They create empathy between us and others between us and others, an empathy that we need today more than ever.