Last night, Oprah Winfrey became the first black woman to receive the Cecil B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2018 Golden Globes. She started her shattering speech by recounting a moment from her own childhood, watching Sidney Poitier become the first black man to receive a Best Actor Oscar in 1964. And her speech only became more moving and heart-wrenching and inspiring from there. She talked about Recy Taylor and Rosa Parks, #MeToo and #TimesUp, women who speak their truth and women who don’t have that opportunity, and the hope for a brighter morning in a way that made you feel like it’s actually a possibility and not just some meaningless platitude people offer to make you feel better about the fact that it’s currently pitch freaking dark.
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Now, of course, the idea of “Oprah Winfrey 2020” is gaining traction, and don’t get me wrong — I like the general concept of President Oprah. But I also like the idea of not calling on a woman who’s already done so much to ride in and save our crumbling country, working actual hours and enduring attacks and going Obama-gray over eight inevitably difficult years. I want Oprah to do whatever Oprah does for fun, and when she feels inclined to stand up and deliver a life-changingly honest, inspirational message, we all sit quietly and listen.
Although I do think it would be cool if whatever experienced, knowledgeable, compassionate, intelligent non-celebrity we vote into office in 2020 would have the freedom to call Oprah for advice from time to time, like with a dedicated Oprah Phone on the Resolute Desk, because she is the best and that would be one of my favorite things.