WORDS BY SOPHIE GODDARD. PHOTOGRAPHS BY GETTY IMAGES194
MY
MUM, THERESA
‘Growingup, I didn’t get the
sacrificesshe’d made – she’s not
the loudest person and some
of her choices felt weak. Then, I grew
up, got married, divorced and... life
happened! It made so much sense
how she had brought me up as a mother,
step-parent, friend and global citizen.
My mom would say, “I don’t want
to raise girls with a town perspective,
I want to raise girls with a global
perspective”, and now I’m trying
to do the same.’L.A.’s Finestpremieres
Wednesdays at 9pm on FoxMYSISTER, KELLY
‘When I was younger, I wanted to
be her. Kelly’s the smartest, most
well-read person I know. She wore blazers
withshoulder pads and had a job in high
school– I thought that was living! I wanted
to be as good a student as Kelly, and have
all these great friendships with cool women
likeher. And you know, I did. She’s raised
three kids and hasn’t forced them
to be her; she gave them wings
and set them free.’OPRAH WINFREY
‘Years ago, she ran an episode [of her
chatshow] about what to do if you’re
a victim of a violent crime. It aired two weeks
beforeI was raped at gunpoint, and the
information Oprah gave literally saved my life.
When I was attacked, it was like an out-of-
bodyexperience, but I just remembered what
thelaw enforcement guest on the show said
and saved myself. So now, as a content
creatorwith my own production company,
I’m trying to create entertainment that’s
not only good popcorn fare, but also
changesthe conversation
and is informative.’S
H
A P E
D METHEW O M
E N
W H
OTARANA BURKE
‘There’s a saying, “If your activism only
benefits you, that’s not a movement, it’s
a moment”, and Tarana really lives that. She
launchedthe Me Too movement, and when
I spoke publically about being a rape survivor for
the first time, I heard a huge amount of Me Toos.
Tarana showed me what feminism actually
lookslike. Initially, a lot of my activism was
about justice, but I realised if I centre
myselfaround the most vulnerable,
I’mpart of a community of
healing and justice.’From Oprah to her sister,L.A.’s Finest
star Gabrielle Union tells us about
the incredible women in her life‘Sherefuses to perform just because
I say so, and I always want to encourage
that. She reminds me to be my most
authentic self, because she exists as she
wants to exist. And I’m like, “Wait, I can stop
performing,too?” We’re constantly shape-
shifting to fit into somebody else’s box. If you
allowyourself to sit in your most authentic
space, your face isn’t always going to
be in a perma-grin – you can just
exist, and that’s OK.’MYDAUGHTER,
KAAVIA JAMESFinal word