Regina King accepted her first Golden Globe, for supporting actress for If Beale Street Could Talk, and wasted no time getting down to Black-woman business.
“Amy, thank you for the prayers, sweetheart,” she said to fellow nominee Amy Adams. King then highlighted the importance of representation, thanking director Sir (as she called him) Barry Jenkins, and issuing an important vow.
“So often everyone out there, they hear us on the red carpet and they say celebrities, we’re using the time to talk about ourselves when we’re on our soap box, and using a moment to talk about the systemic things that are going on in life,” she said.
“We understand that our microphones are big and we speak for everyone,” King continued as the show’s music attempted to cue her stage exit. “I’m going to use my platform right now to say, in the next two years, everything that I produce I am making a vow — and it’s going to be tough — to make sure that everything that I produce is 50 percent women.”
Not only did King issue a personal vow, she challenged Hollywood and everyone in all industries to stand in solidarity with women and do the same. The actress and director does not shy away from championing for women’s rights. After winning an Emmy for her role in Netflix series Seven Seconds earlier this year, King reminded men how important their role in the fight for female empowerment is.
“We still need men to know that while this is a time where we are being very vocal about what we’re missing and standing up for ourselves. We still need them to know that we love them and want them by our side being vocal along with us, and being open about those things that you love about us,” she told Variety.
