The famous Golden Globes were hosted Sunday, Jan. 7, and although there were a lot of films to talk about, they were almost overshadowed by the fact that powerful women in Hollywood used this award show as a platform to their advantage. America Ferrera, Reese Witherspoon, and more than 300 other women launched “Time’s Up Now,” a plan that aims to eliminate gender inequality and sexual harassment in the workplace across all industries. Currently, the organization has raised more than 15 million dollars for a legal defense fund, which will be used to help anyone fighting inequality in the workplace. This is pretty phenomenal considering that the organization only started in the beginning of January.
As the show began, many actresses attended the event wearing all black– a symbol of solidarity for Time’s Up. According to E!, even staffers at the event and those viewing at home wore black. As the night progressed, there was an overwhelming amount of support for the cause. Many actresses used this time to advocate for other women, and share their aspirations for the movement.
One actress that used her platform on the red carpet was Debra Messing, who utilized an interview with E! to call them out for not giving Catt Sandler equal pay. On the red carpet while being interviewed by Giuliana Rancic, Messing stated “I was so shocked to hear that E! doesn’t believe in paying their female cohosts the same as their male cohosts.”
Her interview quickly went viral, and Eva Longoria did the same, stating, “We stand with Catt” during an interview with Ryan Seacrest.
It is important to note that the night did not just have strong actresses standing up for what they believed in, but supportive men as well. Seth Meyers delivered a powerful opening monologue that referenced Harvey Weinstein, Donald Trump, and others accused of sexual assault allegations. While Meyers starting the event off humorously with jokes, he ended on a serious note saying, “Everyone in this room worked really hard to get here, but it’s clear the women worked even harder. ”
As it came time to actually award the Golden Globes, many winners used the opportunity to give an acceptance speech to spread more awareness. Nicole Kidman used the opportunity to talk about “Time’s Up” and how her mother was an advocate for the women’s movement and if it was not for her mother, she would not be where she is today.
She also referenced her role in “Big Little Lies,” for which she won best actress in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture for TV.
“This character I play represents the center of our conversation right now: abuse. I do believe we can elicit change…Let’s keep the conversation alive,” she said.
Elisabeth Moss followed suit in her acceptance speech for her role in “The Handmaid’s Tale,” winning Best Actress in Drama, reading a Margaret Atwood excerpt. So did Laura Dern in her speech for Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Limited Series, or TV movie. However, the most riveting and powerful speech came from Oprah Winfrey during her acceptance of the Cecil B. DeMille Award which received two standing ovations. She became the first African-American woman to receive the award.
She finished up her speech with an amazing call to action declaring, “I want all the girls watching here, now, to know that a new day is on the horizon, 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.”
Sources: E! And Glamour