Taylor Simone Ledward Boseman gave a moving speech Monday night as she accepted an accolade for her late husband, actor Chadwick Boseman, during the 30th Annual Gotham Awards.
Boseman was 43 when he died in August 2020 after a four-year battle with colon cancer he’d kept private.
Dressed in a flattering pink suit, Ledward Boseman gave her speech virtually amid the coronavirus pandemic, and she said accepting the Tribute Award on behalf of her husband was an honor, an “acknowledgment of not only his profound work but of his impact on this industry and this world.”
“He is the most honest person I’d ever met. He actively searched for it, in himself, those around him and the moment,” she began. “The truth can be a very easy thing for the self to avoid. But if one does not live in truth, then it’s impossible to live life.”
Chadwick Boseman’s widow cries as she accepts a Gotham award in his honor. “Chad, thank you,” says Simone Boseman. “Keep shining your light on us.” pic.twitter.com/jQidx0Yp6c
— Kyle Buchanan (@kylebuchanan) January 12, 2021
“So it became how he lived his life, day in and day out. Imperfect but determined,” continued Ledward Boseman. “He was blessed to live many lives within his concentrated one. He developed his understanding of what it meant to be the one, the none and the all. ‘A vessel to be poured into and out of,’ he’d said.”
“He harnessed the power of letting go and letting God’s love shine through,” she said of the Black Panther star. “He realized that when one is able to recognize that when their strength does not come from themself, they rarely mess up. That’s what he was doing when he was acting. Modeling for us a path to true fulfillment.”
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Ledward Boseman then offered his fans and supporters some words of encouragement.
“May we not let his conviction be in vain,” she said. “May our spirits be fertile soil for God’s wisdom to fall upon. So thank you. Praise God.”
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Fighting back tears, she spoke directly to her late husband, saying, “Chad, thank you. I love you. I am so proud of you. Keep shining your light on us. Thank you.”
The Tribute Award was presented by actor Andre Holland, a co-star of 42 with Boseman. In his introduction, Holland said of him, “He was a special artist, a wonderful human, he made everybody better, and I’m always grateful that he was my friend.”
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