Nina Simone, dubbed The High Priestess of Soul, is an American icon and a music legend. Because of this, it is without a doubt straight up disrespectful to Ms. Simone and her legacy to get an actress who looks nothing like she did to portray her in a movie about her life. Getting light complexioned actors to play the roles of dark complexioned historical figures is not only a sign of blatant disrespect to the persons they are portraying, but it is also disrespectful to their families, to history, to the people who look like the persons being whitewashed, and to the intelligence of the audience. For too long Hollywood has gotten away with this practice of revisionist history and it is time that we let our voices be heard, be it by this petition or by boycotting the movie if no change has been made as to who will portray Nina Simone. This is not a diss to Zoe Saldana. She is an excellent actress, but this movie role so much bigger than her undeniable talent.

Addendum:

Our call for a casting change has been ignored so now, we're in full on boycott mode. Please sign today to as a symbol of letting the producers of this film know that our voice will be heard through our dollars. We are organizing people of all backgrounds so that they may come together in solidarity and let people know that we will not continue to support the lies and the disrespect that Hollywood has been dishing out for the past 100+ years.