The Deeper Meaning Behind D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai’s Red Handprint at the Emmys
D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai made a strong political statement at the 2024 Emmy Awards. The actor walked the red carpet with a red handprint over his mouth, a symbol of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) movement. According to a 2019 report from the Justice Department, on some reservations, women are 10 times more likely to be murdered—a stark comparison to the national average.
The handprint “stands for all the missing sisters whose voices are not heard. It stands for the silence of the media and law enforcement in the midst of this crisis,” according to Native Hope, an organization meant to address injustice in Native communities. The site continues, “It stands for the oppression and subjugation of Native women who are now rising up to say #NoMoreStolenSisters.”
Tonight, Woon-A-Tai, who identifies as Oji-Cree First Nations and Guyanese, is nominated for playing Bear Smallhill in the FX on Hulu comedy-drama Reservation Dogs. “I think we’re pushing to a time when we don’t need anybody to tell our story for us,” he previously told ELLE. “If you want to make a story regarding Native people, it should definitely be mandatory, in my opinion, to have a Native director, Native writer, and Native casting director.”
You Might Also Like