First announced last week, Rihanna accepted Harvard’s 2017 “Humanitarian Of The Year” award on Tuesday for her charitable work with the underprivileged in her home country of Barbados, and contributions to girls' education worldwide.
Draped in elegance & with a smile from ear to ear, Rihanna said she was incredibly humbled to receive recognition of this magnitude. “I’m incredibly humbled by this,” she said. “To be acknowledged at this magnitude, for something that, in truth, I’ve never wanted credit for.”
“We’re all human,” Rihanna added in her acceptance speech. “We all just want a chance, a chance at life, a chance at an education, a chance at a future, really. At CLF [Clara Lionel Foundation], our mission is to impact as many lives as possible, but it starts with just one. Just one. As I stare out into this beautiful room, I see optimism, I see hope, I see the future. I know that each and every one of you has the opportunity to help someone else. All you need to do is help one person, expecting nothing in return. To me, that is a humanitarian.”
Other past recipients to receive this award include Ban Ki-moon, Malala Yousafzai, and actor James Earl Jones. Check out Rihanna’s acceptance speech (below) around the 1 hour & 13 minute mark.
