Oprah's incredibly powerful Golden Globes speech: 'A new day is on the horizon!'
Oprah Winfrey made history at the 75th Golden Globe Awards when she became the first black woman to receive the Cecil B. DeMille award. However, it was Winfrey’s incredibly powerful speech that moved the entire room and anyone who was watching at home.
“What I know for sure is that speaking your truth is the most powerful tool we all have,” stated Winfrey. She continued, “I’m especially proud and inspired by all the women who have felt strong enough, and empowered enough, to speak up and share their personal stories. Each of us in this room are celebrated because of the stories that we tell. And this year, we became the story.” Winfrey went on to say that this story does not just affect the entertainment industry, but that it “transcends any culture, geography, race, religion, politics, or workplace.”
Winfrey shared a heartbreaking story about Recy Taylor, a woman who was abducted by six white men, raped, and left blindfolded by the side of the road. Taylor eventually sought justice, when her story was reported to the NAACP, where Rosa Parks became the lead investigator on her case. “Recy Taylor died 10 days ago,” Winfrey said. “Just shy of her 98th birthday. She lived, as we all have lived, too many years in a culture broken by brutally powerful men. For too long, women have not been heard or believed if they dared to speak their truth to the power of those men. But their time is up.”
Of course, Winfrey had everyone on their feet as she concluded her speech by celebrating the men and women today who are creating the change that we need in the world, and sending a message to the young girls who were watching. “I want all the girls watching here, now, to know that a new day is on the horizon,” declared Winfrey. “And when that new day finally dawns, it will be because of a lot of magnificent women, many of whom are right here in this room tonight, and some pretty phenomenal men, fighting hard to make sure that they become the leaders who take us to the time when nobody ever has to say ‘me too’ again.”
The 75th Golden Globe Awards aired Sunday, Jan. 7, on NBC.
Check out sexual misconduct taking center stage during the Golden Globes opening monologue:
Read more from Yahoo! Entertainment:
‘We have a zero-tolerance policy now’: Hollywood’s women and men on why they’re wearing black
Tom Hanks, cocktail waiter? The Golden Globes moments you didn’t see on TV
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