-Please welcome the People's Champion of 2022,
my daughter, Lizzo!
[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪
Hey, baby.
-My mama, y'all.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Okay, so, I'm going to be hones.
When I first heard about this award,
I was on the fence about whether I should accept,
because if I'm the People's Champ,
I don't need a trophy for championing people.
You know what I'm saying?
I'm here tonight, because to be an icon
isn't about how long you have had your platform.
Being an icon is what you do with that platform.
And... [ Cheers and applause ]
And ever since the beginning of my career,
I have used my platform to amplify marginalized voices.
So, tonight, I am sharing this honor.
Make some noise for the people, y'all.
[ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪
These are all activists and people
that I think deserve the spotlight.
Make some noise for them right now.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Yes! Thank you!
I'm going to say all of their names.
This is Mari Copeny, better known as "Little Miss Flint."
She spent the past eight years fighting to ensure everyone
in Flint and in communities across the nation has access
to safe drinking water.
She's only 15 years old.
This is Shirley Raines.
Through her organization, Beauty 2 The Streetz,
she makes the human connection with the unhoused people of
Los Angeles and makes them feel loved
and love what they see in the mirror.
Make some noise.
This is Yasmine Aker.
She is Iranian-American grassroots activist.
She is a voice for the voiceless and works with
various organizations supporting the Iranian women and people's
fight for freedom and democracy.
This is Emiliana Guereca, and if you've been to
a Women's March, she's probably behind it.
As the founder of the Women's March Foundation,
she helps amplify our voices.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Meet Esther Young Lim.
She's the author of the booklet "How to Report a Hate Crime"
and seeks to eradicate barriers and empower
the Asian-American and Pacific Islander community.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Here is Felicia "Fe" Montes.
She's a Chicana indigenous artist and activist,
co-founder of the ground-breaking
women's collective Mujeres de Maiz.
She has created a safe platform for indigenous women of color
to express themselves.
This is a Jayla Rose,
a professionally trained dancer who is making sure
there is space for transgender and non-binary performers
in the dance community.
Watch out for that big girl.
Meet Kara Roselle Smith,
a member of the Chappaquiddick Wampanoag Tribe.
She works tirelessly to seek justice for black
and indigenous communities and is fighting for land back
and reparations!
This is Maggie Mireles, and her sister, Eva Mireles,
was a teacher and hero who lost her life protecting her students
during the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
Maggie is continuing her fight...
[ Cheers and applause ]
...against senseless and despicable gun violence
that has become far too common.
Make some noise.
[ Cheers and applause ]
I'd like you to meet Amelia Bonow,
co-founder of Shout Your Abortion,
who is working to normalize abortion,
increase awareness of abortion pills,
and motivate people to work and support abortion access
in their communities.
Make some noise.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Yeah, we still going.
This is Odilia Romero, an advocate and translator
for the indigenous peoples from Mexico and Central America
who are now living in the United States.
Her woman-led organization, CIELO...
[ Cheers and applause ]
...brings daily relief to her community in Los Angeles.
Yes. Meet Rabbi Tarlan Rabizadeh.
She is committed to building a bridge between Jewish people
of all colors and backgrounds, and as an Iranian-American,
she is fighting to amplify the plight of the Iranian people.
This is Sahar Pirzada, who is working on behalf of
Muslim women here in America to advance reproductive justice
and protect the community from
gendered violence and oppressive systems.
This is Chandi Moore, who works as a community health educator
at Children's Hospital in Los Angeles,
giving trans and gender-nonconforming youth
the tools they need to live their lives
as their authentic selves.
This is Crystal Echo Hawk, a member of
the Pawnee nation of Oklahoma,
who seeks to amplify Native voices
through her organization, IllumiNative.
She disrupts the invisibility of Native peoples here in America.
Meet Reshma Saujani, who is advocating for the moms.
As a founder of the Marshall Plan for Moms,
she fights for paid family leave, affordable childcare,
and equal pay for all.
And this is Tamika Palmer.
She fights in honor of the memory of her daughter,
Breonna Taylor.
Say her name! [ Cheers and applause ]
Who was killed in act of police violence.
The Breonna Taylor Foundation has and will
continue to focus on pursuing justice for Breonna.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Give them their flowers!
[ Cheers and applause ]
Power will always be to the people.
[ Cheers and applause ]