Oprah Winfrey, making a surprise appearance at the Democratic National Convention Wednesday night, delivered a fiery speech that drew cheers as she urged independent and undecided voters to support Vice President Kamala Harris.
Oprah Winfrey took aim at Trump without mentioning his name.
“What we’re going to do is elect Kamala Harris as the next president of the United States,” Winfrey, 70, told a packed audience at Chicago’s United Center.
The legendary talk show host received the loudest reception of the night, urging viewers and Democrats to vote according to their values in the upcoming presidential election. Her address echoed the sentiments of Michelle Obama and former President Barack Obama’s speeches on Monday, highlighting the stark contrast in leadership between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump, Variety reported.
“People who would have you believe that books are dangerous and assault rifles are safe,” she said. “That there’s a right way to worship and a wrong way to love.”
Oprah Winfrey’s full remarks endorsing Kamala Harris: “Let’s choose common sense over nonsense” pic.twitter.com/hXrIlB95Ym
— Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) August 22, 2024
She also made references to JD Vance.
Although Winfrey did not mention Trump by name, she made several references to him and his running mate, JD Vance, cautioning against political figures “who seek to first to divide and then to conquer,” she said. “When we stand together it is impossible to conquer us.”
ABC News reported that Winfrey also brought up Vance’s past criticism of women without children, calling them “childless cat ladies.”
“Despite what some would have you think we are not so different from our neighbors,“ she said. “When a house is on fire, we don’t ask about a homeowner’s race or religion. We don’t wonder who their partner is or how they voted. No, we just try to do the best we can to save them. And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady, well, we try to get that cat out too.”
Who is Tessie Prevost Williams, who Oprah paid homage to in her speech?
Winfrey also paid homage to Tessie Prevost Williams, one of the four Black girls who helped integrate New Orleans public schools in 1960. Williams, who died July 6, was linked to Harris by Winfrey, who noted that Williams “paved the way for another young girl who, nine years later, became part of the second class to integrate the public schools in Berkeley, California.”
Oprah is a registered independent.
While some Americans remain undecided, Winfrey also had a message for them.
“You’re looking at a registered independent who is proud to vote again and again and again because I’m a proud America and that’s what Americans do,” she said, noting Trump’s recent comments to his evangelical Christian base, suggesting that they do not need to vote again. “Values and character matter most of all in leadership and in life. Decency and respect are on the ballot in 2024.”
Winfrey had the crowd on its feet as she emphasized the importance of moving forward with hope for a better tomorrow.
“We won’t go back. We won’t be set back, pushed back, bullied back, kicked back. We’re not going back!” Winfrey exclaimed as the crowd chanted, “We’re not going back!”
