This is the only Oscar moment we’ll be focusing on today. This is a cause for celebration for LGBTQ+ people everywhere!
Ariana DeBose, the West Side Story star, 31, has won her first Oscar, beating out Jessie Buckley (The Lost Daughter), Judi Dench (Belfast), Kirsten Dunst (The Power of the Dog) and Aunjanue Ellis (King Richard).
In her acceptance speech, DeBose said “dreams come true.” The actress wins for playing Anita in the musical — the same role that won costar Rita Moreno an Oscar exactly 60 years ago in the original film. She called Moreno her “divine inspiration” in her speech and said she’s “grateful” her Anita has “paved the way for tons of Anitas like me.”
DeBose added in her speech, “Lastly, imagine this little girl in the backseat of a white Ford Focus. Look into her eyes, you see a queer — openly queer — woman of color, Afro-Latina who found her strength in life through art, and that’s what I believe we are here to celebrate.”
“So to anybody who has ever questioned their identity ever or find yourself living in the gray spaces, I promise you this: There is indeed a place for us,” she said, referencing an iconic Stephen Sondheim lyric from West Side Story. “Thank you to the Academy.”
WHAT A MOMENT. And did she ever look gorgeous! Check out Ariana’s full speech after the jump!
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