Lupita Nyong’o Acknowledges Slavery Pain While Celebrating Her Oscar Win

12 Years a Slave co-star Lupita Nyong’o won the Best Supporting Actress honor Sunday, and she started her acceptance speech by acknowledging the dichotomy of her celebration.​

“It doesn’t escape me for one moment that so much joy in my life is thanks to so much pain in someone else’s,” she said, referring to the horrors committed upon her character in the film, based on actual events.

Nyong’o also thanked her family, her co-stars and her drama school before leaving the stage to more applause.