00:00It is my honor to present the 2025 Essence Black Women in Hollywood Visionary Award to the incredible Ramla Mohamed.
00:30You know what, Joe Issa, I'm going to call you by your government name.
00:43Thank you so much.
00:44I just want to thank you for, Issa rearranged her whole schedule to do this, so it's very sweet.
00:52I'm a little short.
00:54I'm 5'2".
00:55But, wow, what a room.
00:59I've been in this room a few times, but this is obviously a different perspective in many ways.
01:06So I know there are many of us here that have been affected by the fires last month.
01:11So I want to send you love and prayers for having to and continuing to go through such a devastating experience.
01:20Ms. Marla, Tiana, Cynthia, to say it's an honor to share this with you is an understatement.
01:27Ms. Marla, you were in one of my scandal episodes, and witnessing your talent in person was a gift that I'll always treasure.
01:34Tiana, we don't know each other that well, but your performance in 1001 is truly one of the best on-screen performances I've seen in a long time, maybe if ever.
01:47And finally, Cynthia, I'm so grateful to call you a friend, and I'm so excited watching you be recognized for the incredible talent that you have, and it just warms my heart.
02:00So congratulations to you all.
02:04In preparing for this speech, I thought about what I could say here.
02:08Then I remembered in 2022, during the press run of season one of Reasonable Doubt,
02:14a white male reporter asked me, how did it feel to have my own show, given that I came out of nowhere?
02:25I smiled the Kamala Harris, Jasmine Crockett, Olivia Pope smile that signals,
02:33give me a second before I roast you.
02:36And then I politely said, well, I've been a television writer for 10 years, so it feels fantastic to have my own show.
02:45But here's what I really wanted to say.
02:48And what a better place to say it, so here goes.
02:51Sir.
02:55Are you serious?
02:59Do you know the struggle I've been through to get here?
03:02The fourth floor walk-up I lived in, the fear of failure, the fear of success, the antidepressants,
03:08the failed pilot scripts, pushing through heartbreak.
03:11Oh, and how can I forget?
03:13Just being a black woman.
03:15It's actually a miracle that I made it here.
03:18Is that why you question how I got here?
03:20Because it's impossible to fathom that I might be the main character of my own story?
03:26On my own hero's quest, like one of the Greek mythological characters you forced me to learn about,
03:32instead of surviving a cross-continental kidnapping,
03:35that you are now forcing us all to forget about.
03:38Does it scare you?
03:41Does it scare you that I came from one of your private institutions, that I sat across from one of your daughters or nieces at the Ivy League school,
03:49where despite all your fears and beliefs, our intellect made us equal?
03:54That I got my masters without the help of a master?
03:57That this half-African, half-American woman succeeded by being creative in a world you created to stifle our dreams, limit our possibilities,
04:09and not only did I surpass your expectations, but I stayed black while doing it.
04:14But the truth is, I'm not the only one who's surviving and thriving, so I want to say their names.
04:28Some other black female writers that have inspired me.
04:32Yvette Lee Bowser.
04:35Ava DuVernay.
04:36Courtney Kemp.
04:37Shonda Rhimes.
04:38Lena Waithe.
04:39Issa Rae.
04:41Nkechi Carroll.
04:42Katori Hall.
04:43Mara Brock Akil.
04:44Gina Prince-Bythewood.
04:45Carla Waddles.
04:47Diara Kilpatrick.
04:48Robin Thede.
04:49Erica Harrison.
04:50Loy Webb.
04:51Michelle Flowers.
04:52Anil Foreman.
04:53Jordan Crawford.
04:55Rashida Brady.
04:56Esther Lou Withers.
04:57Natalia Temeskin.
04:58Tembi Banks.
05:00Amy Inobi.
05:01Erica Johnson.
05:02Tash Gray.
05:03Maisha Claussen.
05:04Abby Ajayi.
05:06Janine Neighbors.
05:07Zowan Clack.
05:08Brittany Mack.
05:09Crystal Jennings.
05:11Latoya Morgan.
05:12Ayanna Floyd.
05:13Rada Blank.
05:14Kiana Taylor.
05:15Sarah Finney Johnson.
05:17Nichelle Tramble Spellman.
05:19Gina Yashiri.
05:21Shannon Houston.
05:22Jessica James.
05:23Janika James.
05:24Attica Locke.
05:25Tim B.
05:26Locke.
05:26Adana Ebo.
05:28Adama Ebo.
05:29And Natasha Wathwell.
05:34On the stage right now, I want to say that every one of you in this room, everyone at home watching this room and wanting to be in this room, all of you deserve to be seen.
05:47Thank you, Essence, for this incredible honor.
05:51I'm truly humbled and overwhelmed for this recognition.
05:54I'd also like to thank God for allowing me to be here, stand here, and be blessed enough to support myself through my art.
06:02I dedicate this award to my father and grandmother, both of whom I miss every day, and I thank you again.
06:08Thank you for the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love of the love
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