Stay Connected
Atlanta Black Star/Entertainment
EntertainmentTelevision

#Emmys: Viola Davis Makes History as First Black Lead Actress Winner

By | Published on September 21, 2015 | Updated on September 21, 2015 1:03 PM EDT
CommentsComments (0) Add ABS as a preferred source on Google i

[playwirevid id=’3900401′]

 

Viola Davis took home the Emmy for lead actress in a drama series for her lead role as Annalise Keating on How to Get Away with Murder at Sunday night’s ceremony, making her the first Black actress to win the award.

“In my dreams and visions, I seemed to see a line, and on the other side of that line were green fields, and lovely flowers, and beautiful white ladies, who stretched out their arms to me over the line, but I couldn’t reach them no-how,” Davis said, quoting Harriet Tubman in her acceptance speech. “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 ended her speech by dedicating her award to other Black actresses including Kerry Washington, Gabrielle Union and Taraji P. Henson.

“Thank you for taking us over that line,” she said.

The award marks Davis’ first Emmy nomination and win. Fans and celebrities alike, including Oprah Winfrey, Shonda Rhimes and Janet Mock, celebrated Davis’ historic honor on social media.

The ABS Newsletter — Stories that matter, in your inbox.

Independent journalism still matters.

We hope this story was worth your time. For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed Black-owned and independently run. We didn't get here by waiting on ad budgets that were never built to prioritize us. Our readers did that.

Corporate support for Black media has always been thin. Outlets like ours get roughly 1% of the $170 billion spent on U.S. advertising each year, and that margin is shrinking further as advertisers walk back the DEI-linked commitments they made in 2020. That's the backdrop. It's not why we're asking.

The wider picture isn't any steadier. Newspaper ad revenue has fallen more than 80% since 2005, and local newsrooms are closing at a rate of roughly two a week nationwide. When outlets go under, it's rarely the ones built to center a Black perspective from the ground up that get to stick around.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Give once Give monthly Support another way

Latest from Atlanta Black Star

Back to top