Actress Sarah Paulson was among those who acknowledged the importance of fighting for equality at the Family Equality Council’s annual Impact Awards at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Los Angeles on Saturday.
“Anybody who does what is perceived to be brave, because we live in a world where standing up and saying who you are and what you believe and who you love and not being afraid to do that seems like a scary prospect for a lot of people,” Paulson told The Hollywood Reporter at the event that she co-chaired.
The actress added of the night’s honorees, including Jill Soloway (who wasn’t in attendance due to her time in Austin at SXSW), Our Lady J, Jonathan Murray and Harvey Reese and Target: “The more people that do that and without fear or with fear and are doing it anyway are deserving of great recognition. I’m hoping we get to the point where you don’t have to honor people anymore to shed real light on the issues.”
Kim Kardashian honored her Keeping Up With the Kardashians producer, Murray and his partner Harvey Reese. “Jon Murray and Harvey Reese met 25 years ago at a gay tennis tournament.” Kardashian joked that she didn’t know there was a difference between tennis and gay tennis and made sure to plug her reality show’s 13th season all before letting the audience know that the award Murray and Reese would be receiving would now forever be called the Murray Reese Family Impact Award.
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“People say a lot of things about Kim,” Murray said when taking the stage. And the producer pointed out that what they don’t recognize is, “When her step-dad made the courageous choice to transition into the person she always knew she was it was Kim who helped the rest of her family understand and accept Caitlyn’s [Jenners] transition.”
Modern Family’s Julie Bowen, who presented the Impact Award to Transparent, said of the night, “This is about love. This is about people and family. There must be resistance in fighting back, but there also must be normalization and love and acceptance.”
As for the messages, Paulson told THR she wanted those in attendance to walk away with, “To quote Lin Manuel [Miranda], ‘Love is love is love is love.'”
“This should be every human’s fundamental right to love who they want to love and raise the children they want to raise,” Paulson added. “It’s a fundamental right as a human being.”
The Family Equality Council, which Notaro emceed, raised over $410,000. Robbie Rogers, Cheyenne Jackson, Ross Mathews and Brenda Strong also attended.
