(CNN) Oprah Winfrey accepted her Cecil B. DeMille Award on Sunday night at the Golden Globes with a message to the young girls watching: "A new day is on the horizon."

The media mogul's message came during a Golden Globes ceremony notable for being the first major award show since Hollywood first began addressing rampant sexual harassment against women in the entertainment industry and beyond.

This year's ceremony was one of the most political yet and saw the red carpet awash with A-list actresses wearing black

Speaking your truth is the most powerful tool we all have.

Some of the biggest names brought with them activists for gender and racial justice, including #MeToo founder Tarana Burke, who started the hashtag campaign which exposed the scale of sexual harassment against women worldwide.

Part of the mission of anti-sexual harassment group Time's Up , which led the night's all-black fashion movement , has been to raise awareness of sexual harassment occurring outside of Hollywood.

Winfrey made the same point in her speech, saying sexual harassment "transcends any culture, geography, race, religion, politics or work place." Read the full speech.

"So I want tonight to express gratitude to all the women who have endured years of abuse and assault because they, like my mother, had children to feed and bills to pay and dreams to pursue," she said. "They're the women whose names we'll never know."

Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Viola Davis attends the 75th annual Golden Globe Awards on Sunday, January 7. Many celebrities were wearing black on the red carpet to raise awareness of gender and racial inequality. Hide Caption 1 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Kate Hudson Hide Caption 2 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Lena Waithe Hide Caption 3 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Kerry Washington Hide Caption 4 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Margot Robbie Hide Caption 5 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Tarana Burke, left, and Michelle Williams. Burke is the founder of the #MeToo movement. Hide Caption 6 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Loung Ung, left, and Angelina Jolie. Ung, a spokeswoman for the Campaign for a Landmine-Free World, was one of several activists who appeared on the red carpet with actors. Hide Caption 7 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Issa Rae Hide Caption 8 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Geena Davis Hide Caption 9 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Elisabeth Moss Hide Caption 10 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Kendall Jenner Hide Caption 11 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Chris Hemsworth Hide Caption 12 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Ava DuVernay Hide Caption 13 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet James Franco Hide Caption 14 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Octavia Spencer, left, and Jessica Chastain Hide Caption 15 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Sterling K. Brown and Ryan Michelle Bathe Hide Caption 16 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Zuri Hall Hide Caption 17 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Susan Kelechi Watson Hide Caption 18 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Debra Messing Hide Caption 19 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Jamie Chung Hide Caption 20 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Allison Williams Hide Caption 21 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Alessandra Mastronardi Hide Caption 22 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Meryl Streep, left, and Ai-jen Poo, the head of the National Domestic Workers Alliance Hide Caption 23 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Amy Poehler, left, and Saru Jayaraman. Jarayaman advocates for restaurant workers and co-founded the group Restaurant Opportunities Centers United. Hide Caption 24 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Blanca Blanco Hide Caption 25 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Kelvin Yu Hide Caption 26 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Mandy Moore Hide Caption 27 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Tracee Ellis Ross Hide Caption 28 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Catherine Zeta-Jones Hide Caption 29 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Claire Foy and Matt Smith Hide Caption 30 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Luca Guadagnino and Dakota Johnson Hide Caption 31 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Barbara Meier Hide Caption 32 of 33 Photos: Golden Globes 2018: Red carpet Nick Jonas Hide Caption 33 of 33

Winfrey said she has been "inspired" by "all the women who have felt strong enough and empowered enough to speak up and share their personal stories."

In her speech, Winfrey highlighted the story of Recy Taylor , a black woman whose 1944 rape by six men did not lead to any convictions. Taylor passed away last month at the age of 97.

"She lived -- as we all have lived -- in a culture broken by brutally powerful men," Winfrey said. "For too long, women have not been heard or believed if they dared to speak their truth to the power of those men, but their time is up."

Her statement prompted enthusiastic applause from Hollywood's elite and shouts of approval from women and men in the room.

For too long, women have not been heard or believed if they dared to speak their truth to the power of those men, but their time is up. Oprah Winfrey, Golden Globes 2018

The audience rose to their feet and remained standing as Winfrey sent a message to "all the girls" watching her speech.

"I want all the girls watching here, now, to know that a new day is on the horizon! And when that new day finally dawns, it will be because of a lot of magnificent women, many of whom are right here in this room tonight, and some pretty phenomenal men, fighting hard to make sure that they become the leaders who take us to the time when nobody ever has to say "Me too" again."

The Cecil B. DeMille Award is given "to a talented individual who has made an incredible impact on the world of entertainment," according to the Hollywood Foreign Press.

Past honorees include Sidney Poitier, Barbra Streisand, Steven Spielberg, and George Clooney.

Winfrey is the first black woman to receive the honor. She was announced as a recipient back in December.

Winfrey's speech comes one year after Meryl Streep used her acceptance speech for the same award to deliver a blistering criticism of then president-elect Donald Trump.

Winfrey will next be seen in Ava DuVernay's "A Wrinkle in Time," which hits theaters in March.