The portrayal of Princess Disa by Sophia Nomvete in the Amazon series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power by a black female actor has created a great deal of criticism since the show premiered September 1, 2022.

The series is set thousands of years before the events of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings which began writing, production and casting back as early as 1997. Many things in our society have changed since then.

Disa is a Dwarven princess of Khazad-dûm in the Second Age. She is the first dwarven woman ever depicted on screen in a Tolkein adaptation. Her portrayal by a person of color has drawn criticism among loyalists to the series who may not be ready yet to accept people of color in seemingly white dominated worlds as Rosann previously pointed out with Steve Toussaint’s portrayal of Lord Corlys Velaryon in the HBO series House of the Dragon.

Nomvete’s reaction to this criticism was, “I’d be lying if I said I’d never felt a little knocked down by life. In this industry, it’s not difficult to get caught in the negatives, to have exhaustion cloud your passion. And it would be dishonest of me to say that it’s easy to ignore the little voice in the back of your mind that tells you you’re not good enough. But what I CAN say is that you have another voice that is so much louder, you just have to listen!”

Rosann Santos is a FranklinCovey consultant and facilitator for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Unconscious Bias and Sensitivity Training. She provides highly effective workshops to foster diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace and society to the most prominent organizations in the world such as Amazon, Goodyear®, and Oracle.

FranklinCovey is an organization that transforms people and organizations by building exceptional leaders, teams, and cultures that get results through their consultants. The organization utilizes certified consultants to deliver its content to those who wish to:

• Developer their leaders.
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Rosann Santos is a bilingual Spanish/English keynote speaker, FranklinCovey Facilitator for DEI and Gallups Strengths Coach based in New York City who has delivered keynotes across the world. She has delivered keynote addresses to professional organizations, educational institutions, career-development and higher learning audiences from every walk of life. She is committed in assisting students, professionals and industry experts excel in their academic and professional growth – especially women.

1. You can walk in and no one notices.

2. You can walk in and you’re noticed for the wrong reasons.

3. Or you can walk in as the crowd parts for you to walk by.

Her specialty is to empower, enlighten and embolden women in ways that are positive and beneficial for their future.

 

Notable organizations who have hired Rosann:

• Amazon
• Goodyear®
• Oracle
• UC San Diego
• Syracuse
• ATF
• National Geographic Society
• SJC
• State Farm
• NASPA
• Gallup/Clifton Strengths Summit
• Franklin Covey
• Command the Room
• San Antonio
• NYU Student Link Staff
• 2020 Faculty Women of Color in the Academy Conference, Blacksburg VA
• 2020 Southeastern LatinX Student Leadership Conference, Cullowhee, NC

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Committed to helping professionals from all walks of life excel in their education and careers, I am among the few NYC based, high-impact motivational keynote speakers who can deliver a highly tailored keynote address to professionals, college students and career-minded individuals. I provide high quality professional development workshops; seminars for professional staff training; and motivational, interactive conversations for high school students and their families.

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