Meryl Streep referenced US President-elect Donald Trump as she collected the Cecil B DeMille award, which honoured her contribution to the world of entertainment.
A husky-sounding Meryl explained she had lost her voice after accepting the award from her friend and Fences actress Viola Davis, who introduced her.
She said: “I just want to pick up on what Hugh (Laurie) said, you and all of us in this room belong to the most vilified segment of American society right now, think about it, Hollywood, foreigners and the press.
Meryl Streep gets political with anti-Trump message: "Join me in supporting the committee to protect journalists" https://t.co/0PpcjaEsi6 pic.twitter.com/Sc2GkmoMKO
— Hollywood Reporter (@THR) January 9, 2017
“But who are we and what is Hollywood anyway? It’s just a bunch of people from other places.”
She went on to reference an incident during which Trump appeared to mock a disabled reporter last year saying: “It broke my heart when I saw it and I still can’t get it out of my head.
“It wasn’t in a movie, it was real life… disrespect invites disrespect, violence incites violence. When powerful people use their position to bully others we all lose.”
Meryl Streep: My friend, the dear departed Princess Leia said to me, "Take your broken heart and make it into art" https://t.co/0PpcjaEsi6 pic.twitter.com/Sdw1ZZHCQA
— Hollywood Reporter (@THR) January 9, 2017
She ended with a quote that her friend, the late Star Wars actress Carrie Fisher, had said to her.
“Take your broken heart, make it into art. Thank you my friend,” she said.
