30 Years of WOTY: Unforgettable Moments From Every Glamour Women of the Year Awards

Robin Roberts, Tyra Banks, and more former Women of the Year share their fondest memories of the annual event.

Electric. That’s how Glamour staff members past and present describe our annual Women of the Year awards, which celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2020. When the event started in 1990, then editor in chief Ruth Whitney envisioned WOTY—as we lovingly call it—as a network of high-achieving women coming together to inspire others to reach their goals, and that spirit has remained in the decades following.

Some examples of this electricity: In 1992, when Anita Hill was given a special tribute in a year that also honored Women of the Year Hillary Rodham Clinton, Katie Couric, Whoopi Goldberg, and Jackie Joyner-Kersee. Or in 2013, when Lady Gaga, Malala Yousafzai, and Barbra Streisand were all in the same room. And in 2018, when Kamala Harris, Chrissy Teigen, and Viola Davis were among those celebrated.

Women of the Year has always been a rare opportunity for titans and trailblazers across industries to meet and motivate each other (and you!) with their words. You can read all about this in our book Glamour: 30 Years of Women Who Have Reshaped the World, available now, which highlights some of our favorite WOTY speeches, quotes, and history.

Here, we look back at the moments and honorees who have made Glamour’s Women of the Year an event that makes us not only proud to painstakingly plan and produce, but proud to be women. Each memory and anecdote represents everything the annual event stands for: enrichment, empowerment, and yes, glamour. 

1990

The first Women of the Year ceremony was held in New York City at the iconic Rainbow Room, perched 65 floors above Rockefeller Center. Among the honorees that November was Children’s Defense Fund founder Marian Wright Edelman, who said in her moving speech, “If you don’t like the way the world is, you change it.”

Following the year’s success of feature film Dick Tracy and pop anthem “Like a Prayer,” Madonna was selected to be the magazine’s first WOTY cover star. Glamour editor-in-chief Ruth Whitney praised the icon at the event, telling the crowd, “While everyone’s a celebrity for 15 minutes and media stars come and go, Madonna is still getting what she wanted, still on center stage, still top banana, still commander in chief of her own wildly successful enterprise.”

Women of the Year was never considered by my mother to be a once-a-year event. She wanted to create a network of impressive women who would continue the connections they made at those awards over time. It’s why she would invite past winners back—and many did return. If not every year, then as often as possible. —Philip Whitney, son of the late Ruth Whitney, former editor in chief of Glamour, 1967–1998

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1991

Anita Hill was honored less than a month after she testified in front of an all-male Senate Judiciary Committee about the sexual harassment she experienced from Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas. Her testimony came in after the Women of the Year print issue had been sent to the printers—so Whitney had to literally stop the presses in order to include her. “That [support from Glamour] gave me hope very early on, that my life would not always be limited, that my ability to speak out would in one way or another become protected,” Hill later said.

The late Major Marie T. Rossi, a soldier in the U.S. Army, was given a special commemoration. Among the 35,000-plus women to be deployed in the first Gulf War, she was one of the first in American history to serve a role on the front line of battle.

1992

Twenty-four women were elected to Congress in 1992—a record for the time, which became known as the Year of the Woman. Carol Moseley Braun, the first Black woman to be elected to the U.S. Senate, was honored at the WOTY ceremony that year.

First Lady Hillary Clinton received her first of two WOTY awards that November. (She was honored again in 2008 for her presidential run.) “We need to find our voices to speak out on behalf of what we care about,” she told the crowd. “And to make the choices that are right for us.”

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Glamour’s Women of the Year awards does an incredible job highlighting women who are game changers and disruptors. I am deeply honored each time they include me in this community of trailblazing women. We must create a path for the next generation to use their voice and change the world. I’ve been thrilled to be in the presence of everyone from Ruby Bridges to Anita Hill and had the privilege of bringing my daughters to this inspiring event. —Katie Couric, 1992, 2002, 2006 Woman of the Year

1993

Writer and director Nora Ephron, the visionary behind beloved films like When Harry Met Sally and Silkwood, was honored a few months after Sleepless in Seattle’s release. In her speech she called her career “the greatest job in the world.”

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We also honored Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg—she was given a lifetime achievement award in 2012 as well—for becoming the second woman to serve on the bench. “I come from a world where women were protected out of everything,” she told Glamour in an interview. “Protected out of being lawyers, out of being engineers, out of being bartenders.” Because of her, that world has changed.

1994

Actor and singer Vanessa Williams had a banner year in 1994: the release of her third studio album, which included a chart-topping cover of “Colors of Wind” from Disney’s Pocahontas; a starring role on Broadway in Kiss of the Spider Woman; and of course, a Glamour Woman of the Year award. Those last two milestones overlapped when Williams had to rush straight from the WOTY ceremony to the theater in order to make her call time. All in a day’s work.

Nineteen-year-old Shannon Faulkner was accepted to the Citadel, an all-male public South Carolina college, by deleting all references to her gender on her high-school transcript. Her acceptance was later rescinded, but she challenged the decision and eventually became the first woman to be admitted. “I’m going to be a cadet,” she told Glamour at the time. “And a damned good one.”

I was starring in Kiss of the Spider Woman, my Broadway debut, so I only had a few minutes to give my Woman of the Year speech before the 8 p.m. show time! But WOTY is a wonderful celebration of women—I was so grateful to be honored, not just for my achievements, but for me as a person. That means more than anything else. —Vanessa Williams, 1994 Woman of the Year

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1995

Madeleine Albright was honored for her role as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, but she was only on the cusp of making history: Two years later she became the first woman U.S. secretary of state. “There are no bounds to what can happen when women get involved,” Albright said during her WOTY speech.

Civil rights activist Myrlie Evers-Williams picked up a WOTY award months after her election as chairwoman of the NAACP. “Ultimately, it is up to us to clear the path,” she told Glamour. “To [build] an America where we make the fullest use of the great gifts God gave us.” Nearly two decades later, in 2013, Barack Obama selected her to read the invocation prayer at his second presidential inauguration.

1996

In 2020, it’s hard to imagine something as simple as a woman’s wearing pants could make history, but that wasn’t always the case. When WOTY winner Susan Molinari served as a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 1997, she was one of the first women to not wear a skirt or dress on the House floor.

The 1996 U.S. Olympic women’s basketball team—which consisted of players Teresa Edwards, Ruthie Bolton, Sheryl Swoopes, Lisa Leslie, Katrina McClain, Dawn Staley, Jennifer Azzi, Carla McGhee, Katy Steding, Rebecca Lobo, Venus Lacy, and Nikki McCray—won all eight of their games…and a Woman of the Year award. The team’s popularity helped pave the way for the WNBA, which launched the following year.

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I’ve been writing the Glamour Women of the Year awards since before 2019 honoree Greta Thunberg was even born. That’s a long time, filled with many joyful, stressful, star-filled memories. My favorite moments are often the quietest ones: the short window when the script is locked, it’s too late to change anything in the prompter, and the presenters and honorees are gathered together in the greenroom, enjoying a cocktail and getting a touch-up from the L’Oréal makeup artists. Especially in the days before smartphones, everyone would mingle with each other, unfiltered by publicists, and I would be like, “Oh, hello, Head of State next to Oscar winner next to Olympian, I just want to check if you’re all set with your script.” —Wendy Shanker, WOTY head writer

1997

Actor Julia Louis-Dreyfus snagged a WOTY award for her role as Elaine Benes on the hit sitcom Seinfeld. She delivered her speech via a video from the set, quipping, “I didn’t get into this business for the money, the creative satisfaction, or the joy of performing. I got into it for something a little more meaningful: the glamour.”

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As one of the first plus-size models to achieve massive commercial success, Emme was everywhere in 1997. She was an influential advocate for body positivity, for which Glamour named her a Woman of the Year. “When we can drop this obsession with having the perfect body, we can start living so much more of life,” she said at the event.

1998

Waris Dirie—model, actor, author, and human rights activist—served as a United Nations special ambassador from 1997 to 2003 in the fight against female gender mutilation, something she had survived. The audience was moved to tears as Dirie opened up about her experience during her speech and shared how she planned to use her platform to help others. “I have to put my privacy aside,” she said. “What else is more important than saving a child’s life?”

When Mariah Carey picked up her WOTY, she was coming off the success of Butterfly, her first album following her divorce from Sony Music head Tommy Mottola. “What I’ve learned over the years is that I can trust my instincts,” she told Glamour. With five Grammy awards and more than 200 million records sold worldwide, that’s an understatement.

In my first year as editor in chief, 1998, we honored Waris Dirie, a model who advocated against female genital mutilation. I felt it was vital to put a spotlight on the work she was doing, and it was a poignant moment at the awards when she described the physical pain and emotional terror of what she went through. I was proud we could honor her for her courage. —Bonnie Fuller, former editor in chief of Glamour, 1998–2001

1999

Barbara Walters received a lifetime achievement award for her groundbreaking work as a celebrated broadcast journalist. In her speech the View cohost joked that she was surprised to receive the honor because, “I’m still in there pitching and catching!”

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Jennifer Lopez was in Los Angeles filming a movie when she was awarded a Woman of the Year, so she gave her speech from the set. “You know, as a young girl growing up in the Bronx, I had so many dreams and so many things I wanted to accomplish, and I’ve been very lucky,” she said. “I just think [this award is] a great inspiring message for all the other little girls who are growing up in the Bronx right now, and everywhere, for them to see that they can accomplish whatever they want to accomplish too.”

2000

Vashti Murphy McKenzie, who became the first female bishop in the African Methodist Episcopal Church earlier that year, gave one of the best speeches of the night. Now that the stained-glass ceiling has been broken, she said, “Don’t you dare pick up the pieces and put it back.”

Another first Glamour celebrated in 2000: Andrea Jung, the first woman CEO of Avon in the beauty company’s 114-year history. “I’ve been asked hundreds of times in the last year, ‘How’s it feel to have gotten the job as a woman?’” Jung said in her speech. “My answer is always the same thing, which is: ‘Getting the job is only a small part of it. What can a woman do in the job to make a difference?’”

My first WOTY as editor in chief was in 2001, right after September 11. It had so personally affected New York, where the Women of the Year awards lived. At the ceremony we honored several of the fallen rescue workers and officers. We also honored a group called RAWA, the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan. It was important we recognized both the American heroes as well as the women who had been fighting and living under extremism for years. —Cindi Leive, former editor in chief of Glamour, 2001–2017

2001

Glamour’s Women of the Year ceremony honored those who lost their lives in the September 11 terrorist attacks and the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan (RAWA), a group of women dedicated to fighting for social justice in Afghanistan.

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Will & Grace star Debra Messing was also among that year’s winners. “How the hell did I get up here?” she joked as she accepted her statue. “I guess that’s what a good hair colorist will do.”

2002

Nancy Pelosi, the House minority whip at the time, was on hand to accept her award. “Every generation has a responsibility to make the future better for the next,” she said in her rousing speech. Five years later, in 2007, she won again as Speaker of the House.

Future Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon presented the award to his female Saturday Night Live costars, Tina Fey, Maya Rudolph, Amy Poehler, Rachel Dratch, and Ana Gasteyer. “Some women advance the cause through courage and legislation and innovation, and others do it with fart jokes and perm wigs,” Gasteyer joked as she accepted on behalf of the women.

One of my favorite memories happened in my first year, 2002. Hillary Clinton, the junior senator from New York, was presenting to a courageous 9/11 survivor named Lauren Manning. On the outside I was completely professional as I approached the former first lady in the hallway. On the inside I’m fangirling out. All of a sudden there’s a shift in the hall, a rumble of footsteps, a change in the atmosphere…and bodyguards proceeding Jennifer Lopez and her entourage push through. It all happens in slo-mo: her bodyguard shouting, “Coming through!” followed by her publicist, assistant, hair and makeup team; then Jennifer Lopez herself glides by, a golden goddess deep in her skin-baring Bennifer era, trailed by a guy who is just there to hold her furs. I inhale the J.Lo aura, and it is the best smell I’ve ever smelled, ever. Then she’s off to her dressing room, and it’s me and Hillary, blinking in a blast of celebrity, checking the script before another epic WOTY night. —Wendy Shanker

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2003

Seven months after their release from captivity in Iraq, Private First Class Jessica Lynch and Specialist Shoshana Johnson paid tribute to Specialist Lori Ann Piestewa, the first servicewoman to be killed in the Iraq War and the first Native woman to die in combat while serving the United States.

Winner Britney Spears rubbed elbows with Sharon Stone, who was honored in 2000. Stone came back three years later to present a 2003 WOTY to fashion designer Vera Wang. On the red carpet, the actor jokingly complained that Spears, who made headlines earlier that year for her performance with Madonna at the MTV Video Music Awards, “didn’t kiss me.”

2004

Honoree Alicia Keys teared up during the ceremony, then exclaimed, “Damn, I’m too cool to cry!” During her speech, she cited her mother and grandmother as role models. “They taught me that you can still be beautiful even with all of our flaws.”

Judy Blume was celebrated for her work as an influential anti-censorship activist, a role the beloved author took on after critics tried to ban some of her best-selling young-adult novels, including Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret, for their frank depictions of female masturbation, sexuality, and other taboo topics. “Did I plan to become an activist?” she said in her speech. “No, but things happen. You either take action or you don’t. Standing up and speaking out, you find out, makes you feel a lot better than doing nothing.”

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Overland Entertainment started producing Glamour Women of the Year in 2002. We were always working to create a magical, meaningful, and inspirational evening for the honorees and the audience, and it never failed that whatever we planned and rehearsed just always rose to another level on the stage. Some of the most memorable moments came from the honorees that impacted people’s lives on a more grassroots level. In 2004 Glamour honored Alice Coles, who cofounded Bayview Citizens for Social Justice, an organization whose mission is to eliminate poverty by improving the living conditions of citizens in Bayview, Virginia. Her passion and determination to change the lives of those living in poverty was so incredible. —Leane Romeo, president of Overland Entertainment

2005

Woman of the Year Mukhtar Mai sought justice from her rapists—then used the money the Pakistani government gave her in compensation to start a school in her hometown. “It’s because of the support of the world that I feel brave,” she said in her moving speech.

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After singer Melissa Ethridge, a 2005 honoree, was diagnosed with cancer in 2004, she turned her personal battle into a public cause through benefit concerts, writing an anthem for Race for the Cure, and opening up about her experience. “I thought, Maybe this’ll help someone lying in bed on chemo,” she told Glamour. On the set for her Woman of the Year portrait, photographer Norman Jean Roy said she broke into a beautiful rendition of “You Can’t Always Get What You Want.”

2006

Future senator Tammy Duckworth was running for Congress when she was honored as a Woman of the Year. “Stand up for what’s important to you,” she said. “Or someone else will make decisions for you.”

Tennis legend Billie Jean King scooped up a lifetime achievement award for her commitment to fighting for equal pay and rights for women. “To me, true champions lift up others,” she said.

Some incredible women have been included in Women of the Year. The greatest experience, for me, was when I presented the award to the women behind Black Lives Matter as well as Robin Roberts. That was really special. I love seeing all the women who are really, truly changing the world—scientists and world leaders and others who are going to be leading the charge for what comes next. —Shonda Rhimes, 2007 Woman of the YearA few years after I had been myself honored Woman of the Year, Glamour asked me to present the award to filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy for her extraordinary documentary Saving Face. When she came onstage, she brought along one of the heroes of the movie, Zakia Parveen, who had survived an acid attack that severely damaged her face. It was a very moving moment for me and for the audience, but it was later after we left the stage that I learned a lesson of courage and dignity that I will never forget. The three of us took an elevator to go back to the greenroom to do some photos and press interviews. As we entered the elevator, I saw Zakia looking at herself in the mirror. She looked beautiful, and felt so. It was not about the makeup on her damaged face, but the fact that she was owning who she was…she was gorgeous. —Diane von Furstenberg, 2005 Woman of the Year

2007

Mariah Carey, 1998 Woman of the Year, opened the 2007 show with a moving performance of her hit song “Hero” with participation from a children’s choir. Toni Morrison, Shonda Rhimes, and Jennifer Garner were also celebrated for their achievements.

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Little Miss Sunshine star Abigail Breslin became Glamour’s first and only Girl of the Year. “I accept this award with an encouragement and a challenge to grow up and make changes the way these women have,” she said in her speech.

2008

Nujood Ali, the first child bride in Yemen to receive a divorce, and fellow honoree Hillary Clinton formed a bond when they met at the ’08 Women of the Year awards. The two stayed in touch—when Clinton traveled to Yemen in 2011, Ali was one of her first visits—and the secretary of state joined the young activist in advocating to end the practice of child marriage worldwide.

Woman of the Year Tyra Banks gave one of the most memorable speeches of the night, which she addressed to all the young women in the audience. “If you have a dream and a goal, and you knock on that front door and they won’t allow you in, go through the back door,” she said. “If the back door is locked, go through the cellar or the basement. If that’s all boarded up, climb your butt through the window. But get in.”

Condoleezza Rice and Hillary Clinton were both honored the year I won, which is crazy! It is super flattering. —Tyra Banks, 2008 Woman of the YearI'll never forget 2008, the year I had my first son. I’d just returned to work after maternity leave, and our load-in at Carnegie Hall the day before the show was over 12 hours on a Sunday. I was running editorial, so I absolutely needed and wanted to be there. But I also needed to breastfeed my baby. I was stressed and my supply was falling off, so I nursed him right there in that gorgeous, majestic space, feeling righteous but also embarrassed with all of those incredible stars, athletes, and icons there. But I had a bit of an epiphany as I watched star after star stand on their mark on that massive stage and practice their lines. Every one of them had a moment of being nervous, having their breath taken away by the history in front of them. You can’t help feeling reverent up there. They were so human in their strength, I realized. As I sat there nursing my boy, I realized I was too. —Lauren Smith Brody, former executive editor of Glamour and author and founder of The Fifth Trimester, which helps businesses achieve gender equality in the workplace

2009

After an introduction from former president Bill Clinton, lifetime achievement award winner Maya Angelou sang a gospel hymn before telling the crowd, “Glamour is profound. It’s saying, ‘I take responsibility for myself.’”

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Fellow honoree Rihanna was so moved by Angelou’s speech that she joked, “I have to say, Maya Angelou, I love you, but you made this terribly more difficult for me.” The singer went on to thank her “women of the year”: “my Gran-Gran and my mom."

2010

Glamour and the nonprofit organization Vital Voices created a fund for human rights activists Dr. Hawa Abdi and her daughters, who sheltered thousands of Somali refugees and became 2010 WOTYs. Fellow honoree Julia Roberts was among those who pledged support that night.

Cher was the year’s lifetime achievement award winner. In her speech she advised to not view setbacks as a negative. “The thing about huge losses is that they just make you keep going,” she said. “I feel like a bumper car because if I go and hit a wall, I just go back and go in another direction. What I would want for girls and for everyone, especially women, is that you don’t take no for an answer. No is just some bullshit word that someone made up.”

In 2010, we honored Julia Roberts. She was number one on my WOTY bucket list for years. Then when Oprah said yes to presenting, I thought I was being punk’d. It was an embarrassment of WOTY riches. The two of them together was total electric WOTY magic onstage. —Alison Ward Frank, executive director, the talent group, Condé NastMy first day of work at Glamour was November 7, 2011—WOTY night. My new boss had thoughtfully snagged me a ticket. Honored that night were Gloria Steinem, the iconic feminist; Gabby Giffords, the congresswoman, still recovering from a gunshot wound and represented on stage by her husband and stepdaughters; Withelma “T” Ortiz-Macey, the activist fighting child sex trafficking; Lea Michele, in the early years of her Glee-powered success; Chelsea Handler, dropping the F-bomb and fierce encouragement on the Carnegie Hall stage; Arianna Huffington, encouraging us to fail on the way to succeeding. And cover star Jennifer Lopez blowing the roof off the joint with her shout-out to the balcony packed with girls from NYC-area organizations. Realizing that our publication fueled inspiration like this cemented my fierce loyalty to the brand, and the message of excellence and empowerment it embodies. The WOTY issues were our hardest, and some years my team worked overnights and weekends to get the pages closed. The importance and the power of those awards make all that effort worth it.” —Talley Sue Hohlfeld, copy director of Glamour

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2011

Jennifer Lopez took home her second Woman of the Year statue and gave a speech championing the importance of sisterhood. “Support other women. Your girls are the most loyal people in your life,” she said. “They will always be there. Those are my greatest loves.”

Former winner Anita Hill presented the lifetime achievement award to feminist leader (and Glamour writer) Gloria Steinem. “Whatever it is you want in the future, build it into your day,” Steinem advised in her speech, aiming her comments at the many young women seated in the upper balcony, invited through girls organizations in the NYC area (a WOTY tradition). “And all of us older folks will be your girl gang. We’ve got your back.”

2012

Ruth Bader Ginsburg took home her second Woman of the Year statue in 2012, a fact that carried some significance for the Supreme Court justice. “Most of my life, my lucky number has been two,” she said during her speech, citing her milestones as the second woman to be appointed to the U.S. Court of Appeals as well as to the U.S. Supreme Court.

One of the most impromptu moments in WOTY’s 30-year history came from Girls writer and star Lena Dunham, who took off her heels midspeech. “I’m so sorry. [My speech] was just never going to go okay that way,” she said.

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I don’t think that the magnitude of the award itself sunk in until I found myself standing onstage looking out at Lena Dunham and Annie Leibovitz. People I had not only admired, but would go as far as saying worshiped. The idea that I would be in the same room, much less share an accolade, didn’t seem at all real. I fumbled, I was nervous, I was humbled and deeply grateful. That experience has launched a thousand others, and I can say it was one of the highlights of my career. Through the process, I met Samantha Powers and Lena Dunham and have formed lifelong friendships that have yielded some of the best experiences of my life. —Jenna Lyons, 2012 Woman of the Year

2013

At Glamour’s 2013 WOTY ceremony, congresswoman and gun control advocate Gabby Giffords joined her husband Mark Kelly onstage two years after a shooter nearly took her life. “I’m still fighting to make the world a better place,” she said.

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Activist Malala Yousafzai—who survived an attempted assassination from the Taliban for her work advocating for education for girls—received a standing ovation. Fellow honoree Lady Gaga, who was photographed for the December magazine cover, said that night, “If I could forfeit my Glamour cover, I would give it to Malala.”

2014

“That I am included in this amazing group of women is…appropriate,” Mindy Kaling joked as she accepted her WOTY award. “I’m kind of a big deal.” She may have been joking, but we agreed.

Fellow actor Laverne Cox won for her groundbreaking role on Netflix’s Orange Is the New Black as well as her advocacy for LGBTQ+ rights. “We have a lot of work to do,” she said in her speech. “[Trans women] experience disproportionate discrimination in every aspect of society, but I believe that there is hope, and this moment gives me so much hope.”

I often think of that incredibly special, magical night, and when I do it lifts my spirits every time. —Robin Roberts, 2014 Woman of the YearThe year that blew me away was 2013, when we honored Malala Yousafzai, who was just 16 years old. She had survived being shot in the head the year before by the Taliban, while doing what so many of us take for granted: taking a bus home from school. She survived and continued to fight for a girl's right to an education. Every single person in Carnegie Hall stood up that night and gave her a standing ovation. I get chills writing this because the room was electric. And it was the year we honored Lady Gaga and Barbra Streisand. What a room! —Karena Bullock Bailey, special events producer, Glamour

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2015

Comedian Amy Schumer hosted the WOTY awards at New York City’s Carnegie Hall and had the audience roaring with her opening remarks. One example: “I made new friends here, and a couple enemies, but in my defense Katie Couric shouldn’t have left her cell phone unlocked next to me!”

Honoree Reese Witherspoon delivered a speech so good that Glamour staffers still quote it years later: “I urge each one of you to ask yourselves: ‘What do we do now?’ That’s a big question. What is it in life that you think you can’t accomplish? Or what is it that people have said that you cannot do? Wouldn’t it feel really good to prove them all wrong? Because I believe ambition is not a dirty word. It’s just believing in yourself and your abilities. Imagine this: What would happen if we were all brave enough to believe in our own ability, be a little bit more ambitious? I think the world would change.”

2016

“Black Lives Matter is more needed today than ever before,” BLM cofounder Alicia Garza said as she accepted a WOTY award alongside Patrisse Cullors and Opal Tometi just six days after the 2016 presidential election. “This is not the time for us to sit back and wonder what we’re going to do.”

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In August 2014, ISIS fighters invaded the village of WOTY honoree Nadia Murad, kidnapped her, and tortured her for three months. She escaped and, in an incredibly brave move, fought ISIS in international criminal court. “We have to stop the terrorist group,” she said during her speech. “Because this terrorism has no mercy, and they have no mercy for anyone in the world. But we cannot fight the terrorism with racism because they are both the same base and the same ideology.”

One year I was on the red carpet in a beautiful borrowed Alexander McQueen dress when a publicist whispered to me in alarm that Karlie Kloss—there to present an award to McQueen creative director and designer Sarah Burton—had just arrived in the same dress. God bless the amazing, unruffled Karlie. She left, changed, and came right back, all in good humor. —Cindi Leive

2017

“You recognize when a leader is dangerous, even if that leader is the president of the United States of America,” Congresswoman Maxine Waters said onstage at the Kings Theatre in Brooklyn during her lifetime achievement award acceptance speech.

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A year after the release of her acclaimed album A Seat at the Table, musician Solange Knowles was named a Woman of the Year. “I will never ever take for granted for the way that people have uplifted me and for my voice and my work,” she said.

2018

Two years before she became 2020 presidential candidate Joe Biden’s running mate, Kamala Harris was honored as a WOTY. She delivered a powerful message about leadership: “Years from now people will ask us, ‘Where were you?’ And we’re all going to be able to say, ‘Fighting for the best of who we are.’”

John Legend presented his wife and WOTY honoree Chrissy Teigen with a tribute that, naturally, went viral on social media. “People love her honesty. Her humor. Her beauty and style. Her passion for food. Her sense of adventure and fun. And they love her big, beautiful heart,” he said as he teared up. “I’m so honored to have this platform,” Teigen said of her success. “I’m so honored to talk about chicken pot pies or getting blocked by Donald.”

My first Women of the Year awards as editor-in-chief in November 2018 will never leave me. It was an honor to help bring together so many spectacular women—Viola Davis, Manal al-Sharif, Betty Reid Soskin, Chrissy Teigen, Kamala Harris, Janelle Monáe, the women activists from the Never Again movement, and the Sister Army of survivors, who brought the man who had sexually abused them to justice. We had also arranged for Hillary Clinton to come to the awards as a surprise, to honor all the women who had done so well in the midterm elections. We were backstage when al-Sharif—the Saudi activist who risked her life to protest for the right for women to drive in Saudi Arabia—finished her speech and walked off stage. She saw Clinton for the first time and reacted with the same kind of shock that everybody else in the audience was about to get. Clinton, who was secretary of state when al-Sharif was in prison and had spoken out in support of her at the time, walked straight up to her and took al-Sharif’s hand in hers. It was an intimate moment—one that demonstrated to me the true beauty of Women of the Year. —Samantha Barry, editor in chief of Glamour, 2018–present

2019

When sexual assault survivor Chanel Miller was named a Woman of the Year in 2016, she chose to remain anonymous as Emily Doe, the name used to protect her identity when she made her powerful victim impact statement in the Standford University rape case. Three years later she came forward and accepted her award on stage at Lincoln Center. In lieu of a speech, she read a powerful poem she’d written called, “I Don’t Give a Damn.”

Fresh off the immense success of her Netflix series When They See Us, director Ava DuVernay accepted her award with a poignant speech. “Inclusion is about creating a seat at the table for all of us,” she said. “Pulling up a chair for those left out. It denotes an absence being remedied.”

This story originally appeared on: Glamour - Author:Anna Moeslein