Taraji P. Henson goes to maintain telling her reality.

As she took the stage on the 2024 ABFF Honors on Sunday evening, “The Coloration Purple” star pointed to a tattoo on her left bicep that spells out these phrases precisely: “The Fact.”

“In case you are alive and God blessed you with one other day to stay, it’s your job to inform your reality,” Henson advised the group gathered for the American Black Movie Pageant’s marquee gala. “As a result of by you telling your reality, you set your self free and any person else free. Once we keep quiet, nothing modifications. The squeaky wheel will get mounted.”

That ideology is one thing Henson’s realized to maintain shut through the years, significantly in the case of navigating Hollywood.

Late final 12 months, Henson spoke her reality and sparked an essential dialog concerning the distinctive challenges Black actresses face. She used her platform throughout “The Coloration Purple” press tour to name out problems with pay inequity and the substandard companies provided to — or slightly denied — Black expertise in regard to trailers and transportation.

However as an alternative of investigating her claims and looking for the foundation of the issue with the way in which the business calculates actors’ worth, web sleuths invented a feud between her and “The Coloration Purple” producer Oprah Winfrey. Commenters analyzed the physique language between the 2, claiming there was stress, till Henson squashed the rumors in a social media publish, saying that Winfrey made her “really feel heard” within the struggle for higher circumstances.

Since then, Henson was named one in every of Time’s Ladies of the 12 months for talking that reality and is now filming the Peacock restricted sequence “Struggle Evening: The Million Greenback Heist,” with Kevin Hart, Samuel L. Jackson, Terrence Howard and Dexter Darden. On Sunday evening, Henson stood earlier than a well-heeled crowd made up principally of Black creatives to just accept ABFF’s excellence within the arts award, offered by her “Child Boy” co-star Tyrese Gibson. In her speech, she defined why she’ll proceed to be outspoken.

Earlier than Henson was a Golden Globe and SAG sward-winner and an Academy Award and Emmy nominee, she was only a younger lady from Washington D.C. with a dream. And when she arrived on the Hollywood scene, one thing was off. The tales not often mirrored the unbelievable Black girls Henson knew, and even worse, it felt just like the business was pitting Black girls in opposition to one another.

‘I’m so grateful to have been on this business for so long as I’ve as a result of issues have modified,” Henson mentioned. “That is what I dreamed of … a world the place three or 4 or 5 Black girls may very well be nominated for any award or be celebrated on the identical time, as a result of we coexist on this world collectively.”

She concluded her remarks with a message of assist for her fellow creatives, urging everybody to struggle for his or her pleasure, particularly in these darkish moments when it feels prefer it’s all for naught.

“[Your joy is] what’s going to provide the ammo to proceed to struggle,” Henson mentioned. “Should you want a soldier by your aspect, I’m right here. Hold telling your reality, as a result of that’s all now we have.”

Based in 2016, ABFF Honors is devoted to recognizing excellence within the movement image and tv business. The intimate, non-televised dinner was held on the SLS in Beverly Hills and hosted by actor and comic Tommy Davidson.

Throughout the three-hour ceremony, Jeffrey Wright accepted the excellence within the arts award (male), offered by fellow performing titan Wendell Pierce. After witnessing Wright get saluted by virtually each awards physique this season, I’ve come to the conclusion that listening to presenters like Pierce, Leslie Uggams or Colman Domingo wax poetic about him (and watching him take up their kindness) is nearly as unbelievable as listening to the person communicate himself.

Issa Rae offered Kelvin Harrison Jr., her co-star in “The {Photograph},” with the Rising Star Award, whereas Gina Prince-Bythewood was readily available to current her good friend Mara Brock Akil because the business visionary award honoree. Lastly, Lamorne Morris and Leslie Jones offered Garrett Morris with the Hollywood legacy award.

“The phrase legacy, which means, you’re previous, which fits me as a result of I used to be born when the world was flat,” Morris joked earlier than dedicating his prize to his grandparents, who raised him.

“I used to be born in New Orleans once they had been attempting very arduous to make folks like me imagine that they had been lower than inferior,” the trailblazing comic continued, saying that due to them, he grew up with excessive self-worth. “I grew up believing in myself. Due to them, I’m right here proper now.”

The ABFF fan favourite film of the 12 months was additionally revealed through the gala, with Twine Jefferson’s “American Fiction” beating out “A Thousand and One,” directed by A.V. Rockwell; “Origin,” directed by Ava DuVernay; “The Coloration Purple,” directed by Blitz Bazawule; “They Cloned Tyrone,” directed by Juel Taylor; and “The Equalizer 3,” directed by Antoine Fuqua.

ABFF Honors was sponsored by Cadillac, Amazon MGM Studios, Sony Footage Leisure and Fulton Movies and govt produced by Good Crowd’s Nicole and Jeff Friday, in affiliation with Suzanne de Passe, co-chairman of dePasse Jones Leisure and Magic Lemonade’s Rikki Hughes.

For a peek contained in the unique ceremony, scroll by way of the photographs under: