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Monday, January 8, 2018

oprah#2020


With her spine-tingling Golden Globes speech on Sunday night, Oprah Winfrey lit up the room and social media. Without mentioning President Trump or anything overtly political, she delivered an inspirational stemwinder:
What I know for sure is that speaking your truth is the most powerful tool we all have. And I’m especially proud [of] 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 is celebrated because of the stories that we tell, and this year we became the story.
She paddled against the tide of self-pity, sectarianism, resentment and meanness that characterizes politics in the age of Trump. Her message was that we are all in this together. She said the story of workplace abuse is universal:
It’s not just a story affecting the entertainment industry. It’s one that transcends any culture, geography, race, religion, politics or workplace. So I want tonight to express gratitude to all the women who have endured years of abuse and assault because they, like my mother, had children to feed and bills to pay and dreams to pursue. They’re the women whose names we’ll never know. They are domestic workers and farmworkers. They are working in factories, and they work in restaurants, and they’re in academia, engineering, medicine and science. They’re part of the world of tech and politics and business. They’re our athletes in the Olympics, and they’re our soldiers in the military.
She ended with the sort of self-affirming optimism that has made her a star. “I’ve interviewed and portrayed people who’ve withstood some of the ugliest things life can throw at you, but the one quality all of them seem to share is an ability to maintain hope for a brighter morning, even during our darkest nights,” she 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.” (Washington Post)

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