America Ferrera lived up to her name at the 2023 Women of the Year Awards, accepting the honor from her “good friend” Chelsea and Chelsea’s mom, a woman you may have heard about, named Hillary Clinton.
Ferrera was an outspoken supporter of Hillary Clinton during the 2008 presidential election, an experience that led her, as she wrote in a personal essay, to become “very passionate about democracy and elections.
“And that’s how I got proximate to the issues of environmental racism and access to education, reproductive freedom, and bodily autonomy,” she continued. “All these issues mattered to me and connected to me as a woman, and as a person who wants to see the true empowerment of families and communities who are often left to fend for themselves.”
Hillary Clinton shared similarly effusive praise for Ferrera when introducing her during the show.
“Well, I have to just say that for me, getting to know America and the joyful group of gutsy women that traveled with her those days in 2008 means that I could not be happier to be here today to see her receive this award,” she said. “She is determined, she is brilliant, she uses her platform and power to amplify women’s voices, particularly Latina voices, and fight for equality for all.”
Chelsea Clinton added, “I know that all of us, deeply, spiritually, on a cellular level, remember the speech that she gave as Gloria [in the Barbie movie], written specifically by Greta Gerwig for her, with a lot of her own input, in which Gloria says with a little bit of exasperation and a whole lot of candor, ‘It’s literally impossible to be a woman.’ But I submit that America, with her talent, her passion, and her unwavering commitment to smashing through barriers, that she is making it possible for people today and well into the future to be fully who we are as Americans, as global citizens, as artists, and yes, as women.”
Since the election Ferrara has continued to use her platform to make a difference, advocating for issues like gender equality within the film and TV industry. Her determination and focus are just two of the qualities that made her a fitting recipient of Glamour’s Global Woman of the Year honor.
After reading her speech, you’ll understand it, too.
Read Chelsea and Hillary Clinton’s speech below:
Chelsea: I first met America Ferrara in 2008, in Nevada. Some of you were also there with us and we were campaigning together, to elect, we hoped, the first female president of the United States. And while I had already known and loved and admired America’s roles in movies including Real Women Have Curves, Ugly Betty, and Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, I really came to know her through our campaigning together as the strong, fearless, compassionate person that she is and someone who believes so fundamentally in democracy, particularly when all of us get to participate. And I could not imagine the last 15 years of my life without America and Ryan and their children in it, and the more that I have gotten to know and love this incredible woman, the more she has reminded me of another incredible woman I’ve been lucky enough to know my entire life….
Hillary: Well I have to just say that for me, getting to know America and the joyful group of gutsy women that traveled with her those days in 2008 means that I could not be happier to be here today to see her receive this award. She is determined, she is brilliant, she uses her platform and power to amplify women’s voices, particularly Latina voices, and fight for equality for all.
And I have been really blessed to see America and Ryan and their kids in informal settings, and they’ve gotten to know my grandchildren. We had them all at a pizza party last summer, and my nine-year-old granddaughter, Charlotte, said, “You were great in Barbie,” and so it’s just the latest in her dazzling career onscreen, but she’s also worked to make the entertainment industry more inclusive on both sides of the camera. And tonight, we also honor her for her pursuit of justice and equality. From speaking on behalf of millions at the Women’s March, to her work supporting victims of sexual harassment with Time’s Up, to bringing people together to amplify their power and tell their stories with organizations like Harness and Poderistas, America has tirelessly organized and spoken up for voting rights, access to education, parental leave, safety from violence, reproductive freedom, and so much more, and I am so fortunate to call her a supportive ally, and most of all a friend who understands the power of bringing people to together and fighting for the rights of everyone. And she’s such a natural storyteller who uses her gifts to tell stories that change perspectives and policies as well as a warm, bright funny woman. I just can’t thank her enough for coming into my life 15 years ago.
Chelsea: My mother already referenced Barbie. It is true that when I was getting ready with my mom to come here tonight, Charlotte said, “Can I come too? I love America.” And I said, “I know you like America, but its’s past your bedtime.” And see, the parents…you get it, it’s important to say no, but I know that America as a mom understands that, and I know that all of us, deeply, spiritually, on a cellular level, remember the speech that she gave as Gloria, written specifically by Greta Gerwig for her, with a lot of her own input, in which Gloria says with a little bit of exasperation and a whole lot of candor, “It’s literally impossible to be a woman.” But I submit that America, with her talent, her passion, and her unwavering commitment to smashing through barriers, that she is making it possible for people today and well into the future to be fully who we are as Americans, as global citizens, as artists, and yes, as women.
Read America Ferrera’s Women of the Year speech in full below:
Wow, wow. Thank you, Madame Secretary, and Chelsea. I’m trying to take the advice and take it in. I am so deeply honored to be presented this award by the two of you. Madame Secretary, I know I speak for so many of us when I say that you have been an example to all of us to always show up for the work on good days and especially on bad days. You always rise to fight another day, and you have been a deep inspiration and influence in my life. Thank you for who you are in this world and for honoring me with your presence here tonight.
And especially thank you for raising this incredibly kind, deeply curious, and profoundly intelligent daughter, my friend, Chelsea. Chelsea, as we traveled the country together campaigning for your mother, I felt so lucky to witness how you make other people feel seen through your humility, through your compassion, and your deep listening. I’ve learned so much from you, and I am so grateful to call you friend. Thank you.
And I think this is the feeling that is with me more than any other feeling tonight. It’s my, the incredible gratitude for the lifeline of the other women in my life. The women who have loved me, encouraged me, who have challenged me, protected me, and shaped me into who I am today.
Some of these women are in this room with me tonight. They have been on my journey with me for decades, and at times they could see me clearer than I could see myself. And I wanted to take a minute to thank Jodi Peikoff, my lawyer since I was 17 years old, who has been so many things to me, but was the first person to teach me to know my worth and to ask for what I deserve. And we all need a woman like that in our lives. Jodi, thank you for always protecting me and always encouraging me and always seeing me in ways that it’s taken me a long time to see for myself.
My second date here tonight is my dear friend and mentor Christy Haubegger, who started Latina magazine as a business student, a 20-something-year-old business student at Stanford started a magazine, the first of its kind for US-born Latinas. It was the first time that I and so many others saw themselves in mainstream culture for the first time, and that’s not even why I love you. I love you because you share such a mission to lift up your sisters and to lift up so many others wherever you go. You gave me the best advice of my life, which was learn to allocate the resource of you. Learn to say no. Learn what you are here to do and do that. Thank you for seeing value in me, for investing your time, and your energy, and your friendship in me. You have made me better at everything I do. I love you.
And I could just go on and on and on about all the women in my life who mean so much to me, who I feel so grateful to have in my life. So many of the women here tonight who don’t even know me and others who are not in this room and will never know me, and will never know the way you encouraged me and the way you were a beacon of hope when I needed it the most. Mary J, Brooke, Selma—watching powerful women be their whole selves in public is deeply transformative, and it helps the rest of us hope to be like that one day. I don’t take this room for granted. I know that being in beloved community with other women is fortifying to our souls, and it energizes our work. So, may we value these spaces, may we nourish spaces like this one tonight where we’re invited to celebrate with each other, sometimes to grieve with each other and to possibly create with each other.
Thank you so much, Samantha Barry and the whole team at Glamour for this honor, and for the gift of being in this room surrounded by women who are speaking up, defying injustice, and remaking the world.
And lastly, to someone who is not a woman but someone I love very much. Thank you to my husband, Ryan, who is always rooting for me and is a true partner in nurturing our beautiful children and our beautiful home, so that you and I both can do our work in the world. Thank you for being my partner.
