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'I promise to continue to fight along with such an industrious army to find a cure for this epidemic.'
Photo: Getty
Miley Cyrus accepted the AmfAR Inspiration Award with a beautifully moving speech about AIDS awareness, LGBTQ youth, and her Happy Hippie foundation on June 16. Introducing Cyrus was her date for the evening, Tyler Ford, one of the subjects of Happy Hippie's most recent project #InstaPride, a photo series that launched Monday on Instagram.
"Everytime I talk with Miley I am amazed by her honesty and openness. She's one of those people who whenever she speaks, I want to take her hand and say, 'Me too.' It's not that I agree with everything she says, it's that I can feel where she's coming from," Ford said. "I see myself reflected in her because she makes the deepest parts of her accessible and brings what is buried in all of us to the surface: The desire to share love, a constant sense of wonder and excitement about this world and about life, and a belief that anything is possible when we are true to ourselves, open ourselves up to others, and when we help one another. I am inspired by the fact that she is not afraid to hold her heart in her hands or share that heart with anyone who needs it."
Miley Cyrus took the stage to thundering cheers and an immediate standing ovation from the crowd and began:
"Getting the inspiration award tonight is unbelievable. Seriously, I didn't believe them when they told me I got it because it seems just way too easy and it seems that there's just no way that I have done nearly enough to be standing here on the receiving end of this honor," Cyrus said. "There are so many people around the world right now that deserve this recognition and they've dedicated their lives to finding a cure for living with HIV/AIDS, using their voices to speak out against the brutal and unfair condemnation and abominable stigma that comes with this disease. By receiving this award tonight, I promise to continue to fight along with such an industrious army to find a cure for this epidemic."
Watch the speech below:
