WWW.PROFESSIONALWOMANMAG.COM PROFESSIONAL WOMANS MULTICULTURAL MAGAZINE
81 diminished as I am reminded that I have failed on the marriage and carriage counts, adding she spent many years waiting to be chosen, until it occurred to Ross that her power to be happy relied solely on her. Well, heres the thing - Im the chooser, she said. Ross uses her platform and her projects to help other women feel comfortable with choosing their own power verses yielding it to others. During her 2020 Peoples Choice Award speech for Fashion Icon of the Year, she explained, I spent years playing dress up in my closet as a way to find some freedom or some power, and the more that I discovered who I really was - the more I was able to hone my creative expression through clothing. I wear my insides on the outside, and if featuring Black designers at the American Music Awards helps someone see the power of Black artistry, or if joining the call to wear black at the Golden Globes led to solidarity with women saying times up on sexual harassment, then you heard me loud and clear On an episode of the podcast, Can't Stop Watch- ing , she mentioned pushing back against outdated gender norms in her portrayal of Rainbow. What I did speak up about from the beginning was, Why am I carrying laundry?' 'Why am I the person in the kitchen cooking right now, when this has nothing to do with the scene?'...And I started coining them as 'lady chores.' 'Why am I doing the lady chores?' 'Can't Anthony [Anderson] do the lady chore?' She was adamant that this role shouldnt mimic the usual 'sitcom wife' and that society can benefit from this kind intentionality in our programming. I dont believe theyre lady chores. I believe theyre house chores. And I dont believe that we should assume - because I believe every relation- ship is a negotiation between two people about what each of them feel comfortable doing. I think the more that we portray that on television, the more that becomes the reality out in the world, or matches the reality that the world actually is, she said.
On Power, Politics & Progression
We connect to our personal power in so many ways and on varying levels. One issue that Ross advocates we should focus our power on is promoting positive social change in our government, specifically through activism and the vote. Ross was included in the 2020 Democratic National Convention lineup and spoke to Geoff Edgers of the Washington Post previously on what it was like when she was first asked to assist the DNC during the Obama administration, as well as the relevance of her platform. I dont think I knew at that time how personal politics were. They felt like something that was out of my reach. So for me, the [2020] DNC felt like a sort of an evolution from where I already sit. The career I have is about storytelling, but Im more than an actor. Im a producer and a founder of a hair company and a
PHOTO BY DONATO SARDELLA/GETTY IMAGES FOR W MAGAZINE
Tracee Ellis Ross attends W Magazine 's Celebration of its 'Best Performances' Portfolio and the Golden Globes in Los Angeles.
Previous Page