Oprah’s Words, Florence’s Voice, Salma’s Dancing: How Last Night’s Caring for Women Dinner Rose to The Occasion
It’s rare that the sequel tops the original. At the second annual Caring for Women gala last night, in both star power and financial power, it happened with the help of co-chairs Salma Hayek Pinault, François-Henri Pinault, Oprah Winfrey, Malala Yousafzai, Zoë Kravitz, Christy Turlington-Burns, and Olivia Wilde. Plus, some of the most powerful, influential people in entertainment and fashion decided to show up for dinner—and raise over 3 million dollars in an hour. “Everybody in this room is a powerful master dreamer who has the ability to transform dreams into reality,” Hayek Pinault said, opening the evening up to the concept of giving. “Givers are junkies of joy. We give because the happiness of others makes us high. Tonight we have the opportunity to give some joy.”
At the Pool on Park Avenue, Winfrey sat next to Gayle King and across from Leonardo DiCaprio, where conversation flowed at a long table dressed with potted plants destined to be donated to community gardens in New York. When I mentioned how brilliant this small detail was to Hayek Pinault, she admitted it was indeed her idea, one of many. She’s worked with the Kering Foundation for 15 years in support of women survivors of violence, and this year brings with it a clear focus on the impact on children and families. Every dollar will benefit three organizations including the Malala Fund, National Network to End Domestic Violence, and New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault.
Winfrey, who admitted she was there because “Salma asked,” spent 25 years on air and 128 shows of her career focused on domestic violence to help women “develop a plan to get out,” she said from the stage, speaking to the importance of allyship in all forms, not looking the other way, and rethinking your personal legacy. She quoted her friend Maya Angelou, who hadn’t been able to attend the opening of the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy 15 years ago. “I said, Maya, oh my God, I am so excited because that school is going to be my greatest legacy. My greatest legacy. And she said, ‘You have no idea what your legacy going to be,’” Winfrey said, seizing the moment.
“Your legacy is not one thing. It s not your name on a building. It s not how much money you have. It s not all the things that you think might be legacy-building. It actually is every life you touch, every life we here tonight have the power, we have the strength, we have the combined greatness of standing together to touch many lives and by standing for those that cannot stand for themselves, for saying this has actually gone on too long,” Winfrey continued, bringing tears to eyes around the room. “It is ridiculous that we live in 2023, and gender-based violence is something that we still have to worry about confronting and fixing. Something needs to be done about it, and we are the ones to do it. So let s make that happen tonight together.”
With that, the auction began, and Christie’s ambassador Lydia Fenet had the crowd laughing, standing, and bidding on art and one-of-a-kind experiences designed by the many fashion houses under Kering’s umbrella. The Arctic Dream by Emily Yang (pplpleasr) opened the bidding, followed by glitzy experiences like an Italian trip with Gucci, a Cindy Sherman archival print and studio visit, a Bottega Veneta glassmaking experience in Venice, and a couture Balenciaga fitting so in-demand that Kim Kardashian called out to Lauren Sanchez with an offer to split it when bids reached $200K. (Instead, Fenet found a way to ultimately triple that number with auction gymnastics that had heads turning in awe.)
Soon, Turlington-Burns was helping pass dessert plates of mango and black pepper meringue by Mexican-born Chef Daniela Soto-Innes down the table before standing to dance with Linda Evangelista (and their children Grace Burns and Augie James) to Florence and the Machine’s 3-song set that brought the house down, with more than one couple embracing next to the stage–and Wilde filming the entire performance with her phone. On the steps to the afterparty, where Coco and Breezy took to the 1s and 2s and convinced even DiCaprio to hang on the sidelines while Hayek Pinault danced with Channing Tatum and Wendi Murdoch, Marie-Claire Duveau, who oversees all of Kering’s philanthropic efforts, delivered a message: “It s not only celebrity for celebrity,” she said. “If you want to implement shelters, if you want to raise awareness, if you want to educate, if you want to train people, you need support. They re really acting on the ground.”
Sitting on a lounge behind the scenes, Yousafzai spoke of what she hopes will come from the evening’s star power. “I m sure the issues that we hear about on television about women, from women in Iran, women in Afghanistan to women in Ukraine, keep us all awake at night,” she said. “The individuals that we have here are incredibly inspiring and influential people. They have a huge following. They have a lot of influence, and they are using their role to raise awareness about the issues that women face,” she said. “Women are half of the population and we are in solidarity with those women who have faced violence, who have faced discrimination, who have been denied their equal rights. This event is important because they re not just talking about the issues that women face for a few hours—they re actually raising money for them.”
Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images1/22
Paul Morigi/Getty Images2/22Malala Yousafzai
