The 75th Annual Golden Globes’ red carpet was filled with black gowns and suits representing the movement “Times Up.” The award show was unusually serious as many artists wanted to bring light to the recent sexual harassment allegations.
Eight actresses brought along advocates with them to the show. Rosa Clemente brought Susan Sarandon — an independent journalist who focuses on issues regarding black and Latinx communities. Michelle Williams brought along Tarana Burke, who created the “Me Too” movement back in 2006.
Some other activists that actresses brought along include Ai-jen Poo, Billie Jean King, Mónica Ramírez, and Saru Jayaraman.
The show was encased with the political issues that were obvious, not only by the attire of those attending, but because of the several speeches artists gave when receiving their awards as well as their interviews on the red carpet.
One noticeable speech was Oprah Winfrey’s after she received the Cecil B. DeMille Award for lifetime achievement.
Oprah reflected on being a child and seeing Sidney Poitier win as the first black man to be celebrated for such award, and now she is the first black woman to win the award.
She also spoke about Recy Taylor, who was sexually assaulted and threatened to be killed if she told anyone, but she reported it to the NAACP and obtained the help of Rosa Parks. Yet, justice was never served.
“Recy Taylor died ten days ago, 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 dare speak the truth to the power of those men. But their time is up. Their time is up,” said Winfrey.
During the red carpet, E! News was called out by actors like Debra Messing and Eva Longoria because of their unequal pay to their employees.
Catt Sadler previously worked with E! News before she learned that she earned less that her male co-host and decided to quit. Messing as well as other artists defended Sadler.
“We want intersectional gender parity, we want equal pay,” Messing said during an interview on the red carpet. “I was so shocked to hear that E! doesn’t believing in paying their female co-hosts the same as their male co-hosts. I miss Catt Sadler. So we stand with her.”
“Me too was about reaching the places that other people wouldn’t go, bringing messages and words and encouragement to survivors of sexual violence where other people wouldn’t be talking about it,” said Tarana Burke in an interview with Democracy Now.
At the end of her speech Oprah said,“so 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.”
