Anthony Anderson Gives "Black Lives Matter" the Spotlight at the 2020 Emmys

During the 2020 Emmys, Black-ish nominee Anthony Anderson made sure viewers could hear "Black lives matter" loud and clear.

By Samantha Schnurr Sep 21, 2020 2:34 AMTags
Watch: Necessary Realness: Black Lives Matter Inspires the World

Anthony Anderson had some important things he wanted to get off of his chest at the 2020 Emmys

The Black-ish star was not only a nominee this year for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series, but was also tasked with some presenting duties at this year's virtual ceremony. The actor joined Jimmy Kimmel inside the Staples Center in Los Angeles (from a safe distance, of course) to announce the winner of Outstanding Limited Series. But, before it was time to name Watchmen as this year's victor, Anderson had some remarks of his own to share. 

"I have a few things I'd like to say," he told Kimmel. "We have a record number of Black Emmy nominees this year, which is great."

"These Emmys would have been NBA All-Star weekend and Wakanda all wrapped in one," he continued. "This was supposed to be the Blackest Emmys ever."

"Y'all wouldn't have been able to handle how Black it was gonna be, but because of COVID, we can't even get in the d--n building," Anderson said. "These Emmys would have been so Black. It would have been like hot sauce in your purse Black. It would have been Howard University homecoming Black. It would have been 'You fit the description' Black."

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Anderson continued to lament the in-person moments that could have been. 

"We would have had speeches quoting our great poets like Maya Angelou, Langston Hughes, Cardi B," he said. "Instead of that sexy melanated energy, here I am in a sterilized green room trying not to sneeze on a llama. What a d--n shame."

"This isn't what it should've been, Jimmy," he told the host, "but you know what—I'm still rooting for everybody Black because Black stories, Black performances and Black lives matter." 

ABC

As a powerful conclusion to his speech, Anderson led a chant of "Black lives matter. 

"Say it so that my kids can hear it," he urged. "That's right, and because Black lives matter, Black people will stay at home tonight to be safe, which is fine because y'all don't know how to light us anyway."

For a full recap of the 75th Emmy Awards, check out E! Online's Emmys homepage here.