Lena Waithe to LGBT People: 'We Need to Be United'

Lena Waithe won a GLAAD Media Award -- and she used her acceptance speech to advocate for unity among LGBT people.

"A lot of people ask me why I say I'm queer. I say that because I think it's a big umbrella. I don't want to separate myself from my trans family, my nonbinary, bisexual [family]," said Waithe. "I feel like sometimes we can be a little segregated, you know what I mean? We need to be united. Laverne Cox's struggle may look different than mine, but the pain we feel is the same."

GLAAD honored Waithe in the category of Outstanding Individual Episode; she had penned the "Thanksgiving" episode of Master of None. In the Netflix show, her character, Denise, comes out to her family, a storyline inspired by Waithe's real life.

[RELATED: Why Britney Spears Deserved a GLAAD Media Award]

While accepting the award, which was presented by Halle Berry, Waithe stressed the dangers of a divided community in a time when LGBT rights are under attack.

"We're already othered, so why should we other ourselves anymore than we already are?" Waithe asked. "We have to educate each other on our own individual journeys, because at the end of the day, we're all we've got. So let's hold on to that, and let's hold on to each other. We've got to be one big family."

"When we stand together, there's no weapon they can form that can harm us," she concluded.

Watch Waithe's speech below.