Michelle Williams is speaking out against pay inequality.
Williams took home the lead limited series/TV movie actress Emmy at the awards show on Sunday night for her role in “Fosse/Verdon”, but her speech is what’s winning over the audience. The actress thanked the show’s studio for its pay practice while also calling for people to trust women.
“I see this as an acknowledgement of what is possible when a woman is trusted and feels safe enough to voice her needs and respected enough to be heard… my bosses never presumed to know better than I did about what I needed in order to do my job and honor Gwen Verdon,” she said. “Thank you so much to FX and Fox 21 studios for supporting me and paying me equally, because they understood that when you put value into a person, it empowers that person to get in touch with their own inherent value. Where do they put that value? They put it into their work.”
She went on to talk about the importance of paying women in the entertainment industry fairly.
“The next time a woman, and especially a woman of colour, because she stands to make 52 cents on the dollar compared to her white male counterparts, tells you what she needs in order to do her job, listen to her, believe her, because one day she might stand in front of you and say thank you for allowing her to succeed because of her workplace environment — and not in spite of it.”
The reaction from celebs on Twitter has been explosive.
Williams was up against Amy Adams, Patricia Arquette, Joey King, Aunjanue Ellis and Niecy Nash. This marked her first Emmy Award.
