via Harvard Instagram
As I told you last week, Rihanna was slated to accept the coveted Peter J. Gomes Humanitarian of the Year award from Harvard University, and today (Mar. 1) the singer took to the stage to collect her highly respected honor and speak to the crowd.
According to Harvard Foundation director S. Allen Counter, “Rihanna has charitably built a state-of-the-art center for oncology and nuclear medicine to diagnose and treat breast cancer at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Bridgetown, Barbados,” “She has also created the Clara and Lionel Foundation Scholarship Program [named for her grandmother and grandfather] for students attending college in the U.S.
As Rihanna collected her honor she took to the stage to address her yearning to help others, but not to get credit and kudos for it. Get into highlights of her speech below, as well as the video.
“We’re all human,” she said. “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.”
