Viola Davis makes history with her Emmy win
When accepting her Emmy for Best Actress in a Drama Series on Sunday night, How to Get Away with Murder's Viola Davis made a powerful speech about black women in Hollywood.
"In my mind, I see a line, and over that line I see green fields and lovely flowers and beautiful white women with their arms stretched out to me over that line, but I can't seem to get there no how, I can't seem to get over that line," she said. "That was Harriet Tubman in the 1800s. Let me tell you something: The only thing that separates women of color from anyone else is opportunity. You cannot win an Emmy for roles that are simply not there."
Davis, who is the first black woman to win the category, went on to thank women like Taraji P. Henson, Kerry Washington, Meagan Good, and Gabrielle Union "for taking us over that line." Watch her speech below. Catherine Garcia
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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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