Exclusive: Oprah & Diane von Furstenberg on the 2024 DVF Awards and Kamala Harris

Diane Oprah, thank you so much for joining me today at the 15th anniversary of the DVF Awards. What did you want to create with it at first, Diane? When you start having a voice or when you start having, being able to give people exposure, you can, you find out that you can do a lot and I have always been impressed. I'm on the board of an organization called Vital Voices, which is an international network of, pardon the expression, badass women who really do things. I was always very interested in that and helping the best I could. And my son suggested, he said, you know, with our family foundation, you should create an award. And I was a little shy because how do you create an award? But anyway, we did and it's now 15 years and we have given awards to exceptional women who had the courage to fight, the strength to survive and leadership. And every one of these women, I mean, it's not a movie, it's still a movie. And they are so resilient and they do so much. And when I'm with them, I feel I do nothing. So, and then you create a community and everyone has a community. And yesterday I was trying to it would be interesting to find out how many women we have reached. And so it's, and this year to celebrate the 15th anniversary, the Gates Foundation gave us a grant. So I was able to bring five past honorees back, give them an award again and have them show what they have done in those five years. So it's pretty, I mean, I have to say I am impressed by that. Oprah, of course, you're a recipient of an award, the Leadership Award back in 2012. What did that mean for you? Well, one of the things I learned over the years is that the thing that connects us all as human beings is understanding that we are seen and that we are heard and that what we say or do matters. And so what the Leadership Award did for me was to say, girl, you're doing all right. You're on the right path that the work that you have given your passion to is seen by other people and felt in a way that we want to honor you for it. And I think anybody who receives an award, whether it be the new recipients of the DVF or the ones who are coming back to showing us what they've done, nobody is out here doing any kind of work in service, Tanya, that is looking for an award. But if you're going to get one, it's nice to come to Venice to get it, may I say. This is my first time in Venice and I'm like, well, if you got to give out an award, this is the place to do it. And I'm really excited because I actually get to give an award to a woman who I have such high, high, high regard for, Graca Michelle, who is the former wife of Nelson Mandela. And I've spent time with her and haven't actually seen her since the funeral. So that's going to be a big moment for me to be able to share what I feel so strongly about are her strengths and to be able to share that with all the other women and let the world know how we are honoring Graca Michelle. So I'm excited. It's about women leaders, women leadership. And UN Women have come out with data to say that only 26 countries are led by women. Of course, Oprah, I have to ask you, you spoke at the Democratic National Convention. Why should Kamala Harris be President of the United States? She should be President of the United States for this moment in time, where decency, honor and respect, particularly for other women and other women's bodies and their rights, is on the line. And I think that for this particular moment that we all are sharing in our historical journey for women's rights and women's reproductive rights, Kamala Harris is the answer. And I think that she's going to make a fantastic president. And I think that when she does, there will be weeping and joyful cheering all over the world for what it means that the daughter of a Jamaican immigrant and an Indian immigrant could become President of the United States. It's essentially the story of what the American dream can mean. And so when Kamala Harris becomes President of the United States, it means anything is possible in the world. Diane, do you think she has a chance to win? I am not going to say hope because hope is too passive. I absolutely, I think she, you know, it was unexpected for all of us and everyone was so depressed. And then all of a sudden this happened. And life force and intelligence and caring and compassionate, but with intelligence and laughing and the way she presented herself, the way, I mean, if it happens, I mean, when it happens, I will also feel so blessed. You know, I mean, I was in at the inauguration of Obama, and it was an extraordinary moment, I mean, in the street and everything. So I really, really, really wanted to happen. And it shows that, yeah, anything can happen. And good thing, because it's about the light, you know, because she, we have to look for the light and cherish the light and grow the light and share the light, because it's the light at the end, always pushes the darkness away. That's why she should be What do you feel are the biggest challenges facing women and girls today? What are you most concerned about? I'm most concerned about the ability to continue to make choices for yourself in your life. You know, I've spoken my whole career about people being able to live their best lives. And, you know, did shows about it created a magazine around it. There is no best life if you don't have choice over your own reproductive self and choice over when you get to have your child or whether or not you have birth control or not have birth control, whether or not you could use IVF or not IVF. And so I think the most basic primal choice is being able to decide when and how to have children, and whether or not you choose to bring children into the world and take on that responsibility. So I think that's major for right now. And if we can just get that fixed, we'll be doing a lot for women in the world. Are you surprised that women are even facing that kind of choice? Totally. I mean, I'm a baby boomer. I mean, we thought we had invented freedom and we had made some part of the liberation. It's shocking. It's absolutely shocking and unacceptable. And that is why it's so good to bring women together for an event such as DVF Awards, because it allows women collectively to understand the power that we hold individually. And I think wherever women gather, there is a sense of, wow, we really are more powerful than we imagine, and we can do great things in the world. So it's one of the reasons why I said yes to being here, but also never been to Venice and get to give it to Graca Michelle. So thank you so much for joining us today to talk about Diana. Thank you so much.