"I'm proud to wear black tonight. I'm proud to wear black to stand in solidarity with women who have been doing the work for social justice for decades. I'm proud to wear black to stand in solidarity with all of the great people who have come forward to talk about injustice." American actress Kerry Washington couldn’t describe the evening of the 75th Golden Globe better than she did with those words – a proof, that black is more than just a color.
Shining In Black
Women and men who attended this special event avoided colorful colors to set a statement with their clothing. It was a sign of equality; a sign of solidarity. Black, color of the evening, usually stands for minimalism and is considered as restrained. That night however, that restrain caused a lot of excitement and put the celebrities in the foreground more than any other color could ever do. Whether it was lace, tulle or satin – the stylists' clothes rails shone in different variations of the color.
A Step In The Right Direction
The Golden Globes are the beginning of the Award Season. This year, they were also the beginning of a new Hollywood that is about to change. In recent years, there have been a lot of incidences of sexual abuse of women in Hollywood. However, these occurrences are not uncommon – at least this is what the protest movement #MeToo shows. Many women in Hollywood, including celebrities such as Lupita Nyong'o, Angelina Jolie, and Gwyneth Paltrow, used this hashtag to show that they are victims of sexual abuse too. In response to this debate and the Harvey Weinstein effect, the “Time's Up” movement, is a campaign against sexual harassment founded in 2018. Studies show that one in three women in the age of 18 to 34, were sexually harassed at work – 71% of these women didn’t report that.
In order to win supporters for this initiative, the evening of the awards was in dedicated to the cause of the organization. Actress Reese Witherspoon has even ordered badges to use the logo of the movement to show that Hollywood is not looking away: "We want to show that women are united, always were united, and that we stand up for those who cannot do it themselves," the actress clarified.
Get the Look:
Stand Up
However, the Golden Globes weren’t the first protest stage in Hollywood. In 2015, the hashtag #AskHerMore appeared in the media. Women wanted to show that they have more to say than just something about their dresses. In 2016, the stars in Cannes rebelled against the high-heels regulations and walked barefoot over the red carpet. One of the first celebrities, who rebelled against something, was Jane Fonda. In 1972, she received the Oscar in a black suit with a Mao-Collar as a sign against the Vietnam War. Appropriately enough, the suit was from YSL, who is well known for the early fight for emancipation of women. So far however, no movement has achieved more attention than the “Time's Up” Initiative. Even though there are many critical voices, that see self-PR throughout this debate, it's great that Hollywood shows what happens behind all the glitter and glamour. While the choice of clothing won’t change a lot in the incidents, it does provide the attention it deserves. We say and hope #TIMESUP!
Text by Eva
Layout by Angela
