By Emilia Benton
People often scoff and roll their eyes when I tell them that I am hoping my internship at Glamour magazine eventually leads to a job post-graduation. I can see why those who have never cracked open an issue of the magazine might assume it’s the stereotypical, fashion-y job portrayed in “chick flicks” like “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days.” Although I was aware the magazine I work for is different than other women’s magazines out there, I have never been more proud to say that I work at Glamour than I was Monday night, when I attended its 18th Annual Women of the Year Awards at Lincoln Center.
Every year, Glamour honors approximately 21 women who have made extraordinary contributions in areas such as philanthropy and education to politics and entertainment. This year’s ceremony introduced a new tradition, the Glamour Women of the Year Fund, to raise money for the charities that represent these women’s respective causes.
The first honoree of the evening was scientist Victoria Hale, who moved to New York several years ago as a biotechnology executive. After traveling the world and watching millions of children die from treatable illnesses, Hale quit her job and founded the Institute for OneWorld Health, the first American non-profit drug company that produces new medicines-in addition to finding new uses for old drugs-and ensures they are all affordable enough to reach the world’s poor. Hale ended her speech by noting that a high school diploma and a college degree don’t guarantee one’s intelligence and expounded to the young women in attendance that traveling to and living in different countries is the only way one can truly be educated about what is going on in the world.
The next honoree was CBS News War Correspondent Lara Logan. Upon accepting her trophy, Logan admitted to being wrong in sharing the common mentality that Glamour was just another women’s magazine that features unattainable images of celebrities who have been airbrushed to death. Logan noted that she had initially turned down the honor, saying, “What do I care about being a part of this? I hate women’s magazines!” Logan believes that she was meant to open our eyes to the cruel reality of war, which is why she often puts herself in dangerous situations, including shooting her own video footage in Iraq so as not to put her production crew at risk.
The highlight of the evening for many, including Glamour Editor-in-Chief Cindi Leive, was the recognition of Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison, who was given the Lifetime Achievement Award. Two of her classic novels, “The Bluest Eye” and “Beloved” were among the top 10 challenged and banned books in 2006. Morrison commented that because there are so many great books that are banned, she would be almost embarrassed if her own books didn’t make the cut.
While I definitely was also in awe of Morrison’s accomplishments, the part of the ceremony I had been anticipating the most was the special recognition of journalist Mariane Pearl. As an aspiring journalist, I’ve become fascinated by Pearl’s work after reading her “Global Diary” column that she writes for the magazine, in which she travels to different countries around the world reporting on women, along with her book, “A Mighty Heart,” which details her experiences after the death of her husband, Daniel Pearl, who was brutally murdered by terrorists in Pakistan in 2002. Described as being the epitome of resilience, Pearl has said that in killing her husband, his captors tried to kill her and her son, but they could never succeed in killing Daniel’s spirit and the purpose of her story serves to defy them. She also noted that the task of changing a hate-filled world is a responsibility that belongs to every last one of us.
The evening went on to honor the ground-breaking accomplishments of several other newsworthy women breaking into so-called “boys’ clubs.” This included Nancy Pelosi, the first female Speaker of the House and Drew Faust, Amy Gutmann, Ruth Simmons and Shirley Tilghman, the presidents of Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, Brown and Princeton, respectively.
Additionally, the women honored included campaigner and cancer survivor Elizabeth Edwards, designer and activist Donna Karan, the world’s number one female golfer, Lorena Ochoa, Grey’s Anatomy writer and producer Shonda Rhimes, chef and philanthropist Alice Waters, actresses Abigail Breslin and Jennifer Garner, and several former child soldiers who have survived the ongoing civil war in Uganda.
Leive pointed out that we are inevitably becoming blasé about women making history because of the countless ground-breaking heroes we have encountered this year. In her words, it doesn’t matter if people think you aren’t rich enough, pretty enough or smart enough, as long as you are “woman enough” to make a difference in this world.
Inspired yet? I sure am. If interested in donating to the Glamour Women of the Year Fund, or charities supported by the winners, visit www.glamour.com/news/womenoftheyear.
Emilia Benton is a junior print journalism student. You may e-mail her at [email protected].