All Black in Entertainment World

AFP PHOTO/Frederic J. BROWN

Actors (from left) Timothee Chalamet, Laurie Metcalf, Greta Gerwig and Saoirse Ronan pose on Jan. 7, 2018 at the 75th Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, California. Lady Bird took home two awards, Best Musical or Comedy Motion Picture and Best Actress in a Motion Picture–Comedy or Musical for Ronan, its leading lady.

There are no more empty celebrations at the 2018 Golden Globe Awards. The award event for the year’s best in US television and cinema has shed its glitz and glamorous face for a more serious tone.

From the all-black dresses to the series of victory speeches, celebrities are voicing their support and resistance on sexual harassment in Hollywood and other places around the world.

Two hours before the party was set to start at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California on Sunday night local time or Monday morning Jakarta time, stars paraded on the red carpet in all-black suits and dresses. More than a few wore pins with the words “Time’s Up” on their attire.

The Time’s Up initiative first emerged last Monday. It was pioneered by hundreds of actresses, agents, writers, directors and entertainment executives to combat sexual harassment all over the country. Hollywood actresses including Ashley Judd, Eva Longoria, America Ferrera, Natalie Portman, Emma Stone, Kerry Washington and Reese Witherspoon were among the initiative’s co-founders.

The Hollywood Reporter wrote that Witherspoon specifically requested noted costume designer and stylist Arianne Phillips to design the pin last month.

Golden Globes 2018 was held only a few months after The New York Times reported on sexual harassment allegations against Harvey Weinstein.

The movement does not stop at costumes. Eight actresses came to the awards show with activists as their guests to attract widespread attention on issues of sexual harassment and gender inequality in all manner of professions. Michelle Williams came with non-profit Girls for Gender Equity senior director and #MeToo movement pioneer Tarana Burke; Meryl Streep was with National Domestic Workers Alliance director Ai-jen Poo and Emma Watson walked the red carpet with Marai Larasi, the executive director of Imkaan, a British network of organizations working to end violence against minority and black women.

“There’s something about women in Hollywood stepping out. There is a wall of silence around violence against women and girls,” Larasi said, as quoted by The New York Times.

Golden Globes 2018 was held only a few months after The New York Times reported on sexual harassment allegations against Harvey Weinstein, Hollywood mega producer and a cofounder of Miramax Films and The Weinstein Company. The report said Weinstein had sexually harassed countless actresses and Miramax Films and Weinstein Company female employees for about 30 years. More than 80 women working in the film industry then came forward with their tales of bad experiences with Weinstein.

Their courage triggered scores of other women to come forward with their own tales of sexual harassments or rapes on social media with the hashtag #MeToo.

AFP PHOTO/Frederic J. BROWN

The ensemble cast of Big Little Lies (from left), Laura Dern, Nicole Kidman, Zoe Kravitz, Reese Witherspoon and Shailene Woodley, pose with three of the four awards the TV series adaptation won on Jan. 7 at the 75th Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, California. Big Little Lies took home Best Limited TV Series or TV Movie, as well as best actress for Kidman, best supporting actor for co-star Alexander Skarsgard (not pictured) and best supporting actress for Dern in the same category.

A new day

Interviews with actresses on the red carpet, which was usually filled with questions like “Who are you wearing tonight?” was instead filled with talks about their reasons for wearing black. “I think people are aware now of a power imbalance and it’s something that leads to abuse. It has led to abuse in our own industry. We want to fix that and we feel emboldened in a thick black line dividing then from now,” Streep said.

Alison Brie said she wore a black dress as a sign of solidarity for the courageous women who have shared their experiences of sexual harassment. “I\'m so in awe of the bravery it took for the first few to come forward. They are heroes.”

The strongest message of the night was conveyed by Oprah Winfrey, who became the first black woman to receive the Cecil B DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award. In her speech, she underlined the movement of Hollywood women as a new day. Winfrey gave her speech to thunderous applause and standing ovations.

“I want all the girls watching [the Golden Globes] here, now, to know that a new day is on the horizon! And when that new day finally dawns, it will be because of a lot of magnificent women, many of whom are right here in this room tonight, and some pretty phenomenal men, fighting hard to make sure that they become the leaders who take us to the time when nobody ever has to say ‘Me too’ again’,” she said.

Wearing black will not change anything. However, such small gestures have the power to induce greater movements.

In line with the night’s celebrations, many of the films and TV series that won or were nominated for Golden Globes this year touched on the issue of threats against women empowerment. These include The Handmaid’s Tale that won Best Drama Series and Big Little Lies that won Best Miniseries or Television Film.

The Handmaid’s Tale is the story of a dystopian society in which women are forced to be servants of their masters’ sexual rites. Big Little Lies is about a group of mothers with dark secrets that can ruin their lives.

The all-black dress and the Time’s Up movement that colored Golden Globe Awards 2018 might have been small gestures in the ocean of sexual harassment cases, not only in Hollywood or in the entertainment industry but also in many other professions. Like actor Alfred Molina said, “Wearing black will not change anything. However, such small gestures have the power to induce greater movements.”