Blake Lively speaks of 'uplifting' others 'to live boldly' after being listed among 100 most influential people
Brushing off her recent legal dramas, the 37-year-old actress spoke of the importance of being given a 'voice.'
It comes amid a difficult year for the Hollywood star, who is embroiled in a nasty legal dispute with Justin Baldoni, her co-star on It Ends With Us.
Blake brushed off the ongoing scandal as she took to her Instagram Stories on Wednesday.
She wrote: 'Thank you for the honor. I'm able to see this moment, almost looking back from the future, or looking ahead from childhood, and from every time period I can see how profound this is to me.
'Not just to be included, but to have a voice. It's a fortunate thing, when it should be a given.
'So thank you to @time and to each of you who uplift the many who live boldly, even when it's scary.'
She also thanked civil rights attorney Sherrilyn Ifill - who was head of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund when Blake and her husband Ryan Reynolds gave $1 million to the organization in 2019 - for providing a glowing tribute in honor of her.
'Thank you @sherrilynifill for your words. Since the day I met you, you have shown me grace, kindness, curiosity, wisdom, strength, knowledge and the power of the female fire to illuminate in times of darkness,' she continued.
'You constantly illustrate how connected we all are and can be when division feels like the only ending.
'Thank you for your light, your fire, your work and your words.'
The Gossip Girl star featured in the Titans section alongside the likes of tennis star Serena Williams, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and podcast star Joe Rogan.
Netflix chief Ted Sarandos, fashion designer Miuccia Prada, Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt, and Palantir CEO Alex Karp also received recognition.
In her testimonial, Sherrilyn hailed Blake as a 'philanthropist' and a 'serious person' who was 'committed to move this country forward'.
'I don't know the Blake Lively of the red carpet. Or the Met Gala. I never watched Gossip Girl,' Sherrilyn wrote.
'The Blake Lively I know is a philanthropist and a student of our country's most intractable problems. She and her husband Ryan Reynolds reached out in 2019 to make a contribution to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund.'
'I'm always curious about the kind of research famous people do before they make that cold call to offer their support,' she added.
'The ones I have remained in relationship with are those who, like Blake, really did their homework.'
Sherrilyn wrote that she 'admired immediately her curiosity, and her sincere work to understand the conditions that shape this country.'
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