At the graduation ceremony, the 'Scandal' showrunner tells graduates, 'The air you are breathing right now is rare air. Appreciate it. And don't be an a**hole.'
- Jun 11, 2014
AceShowbiz - Shonda Rhimes, who is behind popular shows "Scandal" and "Grey's Anatomy", delivered a speech at a Darmouth College graduation ceremony on Sunday, June 8. In her 20-minute speech, the screenwriter/producer shared a story of her own graduation 20 years ago, saying that the transition from school to real life was hard.
In her speech, Rhimes told graduates to work hard instead of keep dreaming. "I think a lot of people dream. And while they are busy dreaming, the really happy people, the really successful people, the really interesting, powerful, engaged people? Are busy doing," she said. "Dreams do not come true just because you dream them. It's hard work that makes things happen. It's hard work that creates change."
She then talked about her own dream of becoming a Nobel Prize Winning Author just like Toni Morrison. Back then, Rhimes thought that it would not work for her and she entered USC Film School instead. "Years later, I had dinner with Toni Morrison. All she wanted to talk about was 'Grey's Anatomy'," she shared.
In her speech, Rhimes additionally told the audience that they were lucky to be able to earn an education and live comfortably while many other people in the world could not enjoy similar experience. "Find a cause you love. It's okay to just pick one. You are going to need to spend a lot of time out in the real world trying to figure out how to stop being a lost loser so one cause is good. But find one. And devote some time every week to it," she told them.
"And while we are discussing this, let me say a thing. A hashtag is not helping," she continued. Calling hashtag "pretty," Rhimes added that it "is not a movement. A hashtag does not make you Dr King. A hashtag does not change anything. It's a hashtag. It's you, sitting on your butt, typing into your computer and then going back to binge watching your favorite show. For me, it's 'Game of Thrones'." She additionally told audience, "The air you are breathing right now is rare air. Appreciate it. And don't be an a**hole."
