Count on Niecy Nash to turn adversity into an uplifting testimony.
The Claws actress looked stunning as she accepted the Ford Vanguard Award at the 2020 Black Women In Hollywood Awards in Beverly Hills, California Thursday. During her acceptance speech, Nash delivered one of the most moving testimonies of the day.
Breaking her silence for the first time on her divorce, Nash said she was hellbent on establishing who she is without a partner.
“There was a huge myth I inherited from the women in my family which is, ‘You are nothing without a man. Get one and keep one no matter what.’ This long line of women that I come from had never been taught what choosing yourself looks like,” she told the audience, which included Black Hollywood heavy hitters including Issa Rae, Lena Waithe and Ava DuVernay.
Nash said she then discovered there was a greater purpose in what she was going through. “Heavy is the head that wears the crown. I was chosen to break the generational curses,” she explained.
After having conversations with trusted advisors like Oprah Winfrey, Iyanla Vanzant and DuVernay, Nash turned the word pain into a powerful acronym: “Putting all things in necessary order. It will ultimately grow you, stretch you and make you better.”
Nash said even though she didn’t choose to make her divorce public, she’s happy the situation provided an opportunity to be an example to her daughters.
“I want them to wake up every day and choose themselves. I realize I did the thing when my daughter said to me, ‘I am so proud of you and I want to be just like you when I grow up.’ Generational curses [were] broken.”
Nash has two daughters, along with a son from her previous relationship with Don Nash.
In closing, Nash left us with this solid word: “You will always be the thing—whether you’ve got a man or not, whether you have someone chasing you. It doesn’t matter. You’re the thing. You get up every day and choose yourself, and you teach your children to do the same.”