00:00I'm gonna go ahead and say it. 2018 is the year of the black woman. Despite all
00:06kinds of obstacles like your president being president and dealing with race
00:09and gender issues, look at all that black women have accomplished in a world that
00:13constantly erases us, makes us out to be angry stereotypes, or just hates us for
00:19existing. If you're not aware of the major impact black women have had on 2018,
00:23allow me to over-explain it to you.
00:27Black women started the year out powerfully. Oprah Winfrey made history as
00:32the first black woman to receive the Cecil B. DeMille Award at the Golden Globes.
00:36There are some little girls watching as I become the first black woman to be given
00:42the same award. Remember the Women's March back in 2017? Well, on the anniversary,
00:46the co-president of the March, Tamika Mallory, decided to launch a national
00:51voter registration tour called Power to the Polls. The purpose of this powerful
00:55movement was to help elect more women and progressive candidates in congressional,
00:59gubernatorial, and local elections nationwide. And yes, that means more black
01:04women making it on the ballot. Let's just say, Power to the Polls delivered.
01:08February ushered in Black History Month in such a beautiful way. The highly
01:13anticipated, history-making Black Panther movie came out, broke records, and showed
01:18the world the true power and beauty of black women. From the Dora Milaje to Angela Bassett
01:24as an African queen to Letitia Wright as Shuri, a scene-stealing technological savant, there
01:31was no shortage of black women representation in this billion-dollar movie. I'm still dreaming
01:35of Wakanda, and I will be forever. And that leads us into March when Mary J. Blige made
01:39history with two Oscar nominations in the acting and song categories for the same film, Mudbound,
01:45which was directed by, you guessed it, a black woman. Hey, D-Reed. April, y'all ain't even
01:52ready for April. Because that is when Beyonce became the first black woman to headline Coachella,
01:59rightfully changing the festival's name to Beachella. You gotta love reparations. Beyonce used that
02:06typically whitewashed stage to serve up an ode to blackness, giving us everything from the black
02:11national anthem to an HBCU experience. In May, Meghan Markle became our queen. Well, royalty.
02:19Meghan Markle married Prince Harry and became a real-life baps. Shout out to the blackest royal
02:25wedding. Ever.
02:35In June, our forever auntie and queen Maxine Waters gave Trump a taste of his own medicine.
02:40During a rally, Waters told the crowd,
02:43you see anybody from that cabinet in a restaurant, in a department store, at a gasoline station.
02:51You get out and you create a crowd. And you push back on them.
02:56Trump and his supporters in turn pushed back on auntie Maxine and demanded that she apologize
03:02for inciting violence. She never apologized. In July, Pat McGrath, a legendary makeup artist,
03:07proved that black makes green. Her makeup line, Pat McGrath Labs, was reported as a billion dollar
03:14company this year. Shout out to self-made billionaires. While equal payday for all is in April, August houses
03:20black women equal payday. Black women are one of the most educated groups in America, but our pay
03:26doesn't reflect that. And while the pay gap still exists, this black woman focused campaign gained a
03:31spotlight this year. Let's keep fighting the good fight, ladies. Let's get information and get our money.
03:36Pay me. Pay me. September is also known as the month of fashion. It was a beautiful thing to see all the
03:45fashion issues come out with black women as cover models. I mean work. We have Beyonce covering Vogue,
03:51Rihanna for British Vogue, Tiffany Haddish for Glamour, Tracee Ellis Rossi, Saray, Lupita Nyong'o,
03:57Zendaya, and so many more. October is the month that Shonda Rhimes proudly proclaimed that she is the
04:03highest paid showrunner in Hollywood. While Rhymes is modest about the dollar amount, just know that
04:10the declaration came after the announcement of Ryan Murphy's $300 million Netflix partnership and
04:16Greg Berlanti's $400 million overall deal with Warner Brothers. Of course black women showed up and showed
04:22out at the polls, but we broke barriers in Congress, flipping the house back to the land of Democrats.
04:28We changed the course of history. Ayanna Pressley is the first black congresswoman in Massachusetts.
04:35Johanna Hayes is the first black woman elected to Congress in Connecticut.
04:39Julianna Patton is the first woman governor of Illinois. And there were 19, count them, 19 black
04:47female judges elected in Houston. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the epic memoir released from the
04:53black woman of all black women, Michelle Obama. Becoming has already sold 3 million copies and
05:01counting. This was the best-selling book of 2018. Of course it's by a black woman. And in December,
05:07Simone Biles proved that she might be the most impressive 21-year-old ever. The history-making
05:12Olympian is not only the first woman to ever win five U.S. gymnastics all-around titles, but she recently was
05:21crowned the most dominant athlete of 2018 by ESPN. Come on queen. I hope you are all feeling inspired by
05:28all the black excellence that swirled around during this dumpster fire of a year. Let's go forth and
05:35conquer 2019, shall we? Come on girl.
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