Lady Gaga Encourages Her Fans To ‘Unlearn’ White Supremacy In Her Higher Ground Award Acceptance Speech

She might only be 5’2, but Lady Gaga is hitting some lofty marks lately, and that’s not just in the Chromatica community, either.

Introduced by none other than Jennifer Hudson, Lady Gaga was honored today with the Yolanda Denise King Higher Ground award. This award is part of the larger Beloved Community awards organized by The King Center, that seek to uphold the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and other activists following in his footsteps and working toward justice and civil rights.

Gaga was recognized both as an artist and the co-founder of the Born This Way foundation, which advocates for mental health and provides resources for marginalized groups with a focus on the queer community. She was also commended for her work last summer during the Black Lives Matter movement, and how she advocated for PPE gear to be distributed to healthcare workers to help keep them safe during the pandemic.

“I dedicate this award to Black, Brown and Indigenous people,” Gaga said during her speech. “Triumphant people, whose resilience is the life force of every beloved community in this country. Black, Brown and Indigenous people continue to thrive in the midst of systemic oppression, thrive with radical joy, unapologetically creating full and beautiful lives despite the systems of white supremacy that are intended to keep them from doing so.” Later, she explains how unlearning has been a part of her own process and speaks directly to her white fans saying “as white people we have a responsibility to unlearn.”

Check out the whole speech below.