The voice of and for USM students

SM2

The voice of and for USM students

SM2

The voice of and for USM students

SM2

Hollywood stars bring awareness of sexual assault

Hollywood+stars+bring+awareness+of+sexual+assault

On Sunday Jan. 7, celebrities showered the Golden Globes red carpet in black to protest against sexual assault and harassment in the film industry. Big-name stars such as Emma Stone, Helen Mirren, Oprah Winfrey, Meryl Streep and many more showed their support by joining the cause. The protest was in support of the “#TimesUp” and “#MeToo” movements, created in the wake of sexual harassment scandals in Hollywood. Leading ladies such as Reese Witherspoon and Kerry Washington were contributors in the creation of the “#TimesUp” campaign following the Harvey Weinstein scandal and other women recently speaking out about being sexually harassed and abused in the film industry.

However, the black dress code was not the only way these women made their voices heard. Along with her winning “Big Little Lies” co-star Nicole Kidman, Laura Dern was presented with the award for Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Limited Series or TV Movie. Dern’s acceptance “Culture of Silencing” speech is what truly stole the show. She opened up by thanking Hollywood Foreign Press Association, her co-stars, producers and more.

“Many of us were taught not to tattle. It was a culture of silencing and that was normalized,” Dern said. “I urge all of us to not only support survivors and bystanders who are brave enough to tell their truth, but to promote restorative justice. May we also please protect and employ them. May we teach our children that speaking out without the fear of retribution is our culture’s new north star.”

Another moving speech made by Oprah Winfrey was described as “presidential.” Winfrey became the first-ever African-American woman to receive the Cecil B. DeMille Award. Her acceptance speech was followed by a flood of messages and tweets with fans urging her to run for president in the 2020 election. Two of Winfrey’s close friends told CNN on Monday that she was “actively thinking” about running. Well, Kanye, looks like you should just respectively bow out now. #Oprah2020.


 

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