Jamie Williamson

The 2015 Emmys were one for the record books. It was a night for Black women to stand up and be proud. Last night proved that Hollywood is finally breaking away from the traditional race roles in mainstream media. Viola Davis became the first Black woman to win a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series, for her role as Annalise Keating on How to Get Away With Murder.

Another winning moment came when Jon Hamm won his Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series Emmy. This win comes after being nominated 16 times, 8 of which were for his character on Mad Men. The actor received a standing ovation from his peers, because this was his last chance to win an Emmy for his Don Draper character.

This year’s Emmys proved they could break the norm when three out of the four actresses who won awards were Black women. This trend should keep happening in Hollywood. The Emmys showed that no matter your skin color, if you are brilliant at your profession then you deserve the recognition.

The Emmy red carpet also broke tradition when Amy Poehler’s Smart Girls Organization teamed with Twitter and the Television Academy to start a Smart Girls Ask hashtag campaign that wanted to ask women better questions than “who are you wearing?” This gave actresses a chance to engage with young girls who look up to them and have realistic questions. Even though fashion is a big part of the red carpet, this gave women a chance to talk about current events.