Lupita: I got my Green Card because I won an Oscar Award
Kenyan actress Lupita Nyong’o has revealed that the Oscar Award she won in 2014 for her role in the movie 12 Years a Slave, made it easy for her to acquire the US Green Card.
Speaking during an interview with Thanu Yakupitiyage and Rage Kidvai of the ‘Bad Brown Aunties’ podcast, Lupita said she had struggled to establish herself in the US as she did not have permanent residency.
To acquire a Green Card, the 36-year-old actress said she was required to get a permanent job or win an international films award.
PLACE OF BIRTH
The Yale University graduate was born in Mexico to Kenyan parents and lived there for a year before her family returned to Kenya.
In an interview with Vogue in 2015, Lupita opened up about being Luo, telling the magazine that it made her feel uncomfortable as a teenager.
EDUCATION
In the wide-ranging interview, which earned Lupita her second cover on the respected magazine, the actress also revealed how she was told her skin was too dark for a TV role in Kenya during auditions.
In the interview, Lupita admitted she was not one of the best-performing kids in the class but this did not stop her from pursuing her dreams.
She attended college in the US, earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Film and Theater Studies from Hampshire College.