History — or her-story — was made Sunday on the Season 24 finale of Big Brother, when Taylor Hale became the first Black woman to win the competition.
After Monte Taylor won the final Head of Household competition and chose to take Taylor to the final two with him, we all pretty much knew she had it in the bag following what some viewers called the “best speech in Big Brother history.”
As Taylor made her final plea to the jury members, she stated, “I have overcome so much in this game and I have come to understand that I am not a shield. I am a sword. I am not a victim. I am a victor. If there is one word that is going to describe the entire season, it is resiliency. If you were to ask yourself who the most resilient person of this season has been, it is me.”
“We can have the same Big Brother wins that we’ve had in the past, but I am challenging you jury members,” continued Taylor. “I’m challenging all of you to decide what type of winner you want to have this year? Do we want the same thing, where we see evictions and comp wins be the path to success? Or do we want a winner where we choose resiliency, we choose persistence as a reason to win this game. I have never given up on myself and I refuse to do it tonight when I’m sitting next to such a strong competitor. Jury members, I am challenging you to make the hard decision and change the course of the game and choose progress for the course of this game. I can be with the winner of this season, and I promise you will not do it in vain if you choose me tonight.”
Speaking of Big Brother history, not only was Taylor the first Black woman to win, but it was the first time ever that the final two houseguests were a Black man and a Black woman, and the first time in Big Brother history that the winner of the game also won “America’s Favorite Houseguest,” solidifying a huge $800,000 cash prize for Taylor.
Taylor winning both awards was not only historic but also a huge deal particularly because she was the target of bullying and microaggressions from her fellow houseguests early on in the season. Fortunately, the mistreatment of Taylor was turned around with the formation of the Leftovers alliance. And on Sunday, her fellow HGs voted 8-1 in favor of “the face and sword of the season.”
