Watch Madonna’s emotional speech from the GLAAD Media Awards in NYC…
Madonna received the Advocate for Change Award at the GLAAD Media Awards on Saturday night in New York City, paying tribute to her decades of activism on behalf of the LGBTQ community.
Introduced by her longtime friend and A League of Their Own co-star Rosie O’Donnell, the icon accepted the award with a passionate, emotional acceptance speech.
“Growing up I always felt like an outsider, like I didn’t fit in. It wasn’t because I didn’t shave under my armpits, I just didn’t fit in,” she said.
“The first gay man I ever met was named Christopher Flynn. He was my ballet teacher in high school and he was the first person that believed in me. That made me feel special as a dancer, as an artist and as a human being. I know this sounds trivial and superficial but he was the first man to tell me that I was beautiful,” Madonna continued.
“He took me to my first gay club in downtown Detroit. I told my dad I was having a sleepover at a girlfriend’s house — that got me grounded for the rest of the summer,” she added.
“For the first time I saw men kissing men, girls dressed like boys, boys wearing hot pants, insane, incredible dancing and a kind of freedom and joy and happiness that I had never seen before,” she said. “I finally felt like I was not alone, that it was OK to be different and to not be like everybody else. And that after all, I was not a freak. I felt at home, and it gave me hope.”
Madonna also paid tribute to friends that she’s lost to AIDS, including artist Keith Haring.
“After I lost my best friend and roommate Martin Burgoyne and then Keith Haring — happy birthday, Keith — I decided to take up the bullhorn and really fight back,” she declared.
“Death and loss brought me new life,” she concluded. “Brought me to life. Brought me to love. And so we are back to the beginning of my speech: the importance of love. Because as soon as you really understand what it means to love, you understand what it takes to become a human being. And that it is every human’s duty to fight. To advocate. To do whatever we can. And whatever it takes.”
After receiving the award, Madonna explained to Associated Press why the award has special meaning for her.
“Because it’s recognition of years and years of work that I’ve done over three decades. It’s not anything superficial,” Madonna said. “It means something o me because I put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into all the work that I’ve done over the years advocating for change.”
You can watch Madonna’s emotional speech from the GLAAD Media Awards in NYC below:
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