Mexican leader knocks racism at home after 'Roma' Oscar wins

Mexico's president on Monday denounced racism in his country a day after the Mexican film "Roma" emerged as a big winner at the Academy Awards with a plot that highlighted prejudice and inequality.

Mexican filmmaker Alfonso Cuaron won the best director Oscar on Sunday for his semi-autobiographical film "Roma," which told the story of an indigenous domestic worker who cares for a middle-class family in 1970s Mexico City.

The movie also won awards for best foreign language film and cinematography, and President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador fielded several questions about "Roma" at his regular morning press conference.

Asked if he agreed with Cuaron that Mexican society remains rife with racist prejudice, the veteran leftist did not mince his words.

"I completely agree. Unfortunately, there is a lot of racism in Mexico," he said.

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