NewAfricanWoman Issue 35 - Flipbook - Page 27
ON AFRICA
Africa is a fundamental part of our interconnected world. And when it comes to the defining challenges of our times – creating jobs in
our global economy, promoting democracy
and development, confronting climate change,
extremism, poverty and disease – for all
this, the world is looking to Africa as a vital
partner.
ON WOMEN’S RIGHTS
I know that as your generation looks back on
that struggle (against apartheid), and on the
many liberation movements of the past century, you may think that all of the great moral
struggles have already been won? As you hear
the stories of lions like Madiba ( Nelson Mandela), [Walter] Sisulu and [Albert] Luthuli,
you may think that you can never measure up
to such greatness. But while today’s challenges
might not always inspire the lofty rhetoric or
the high drama of struggles past, the injustices
at hand are no less glaring, the human suffering no less acute... So make no mistake about
it, there are still so many causes worth sacrificing for. There is still so much history yet to be
made.You can be the generation to ensure that
women are no longer second-class citizens,
that girls take their rightful places in our
schools. You can be the generation that stands
up and says that violence against women in
any form, in any place including the home –
especially the home – that isn’t just a women’s
rights violation. It’s a human rights violation.
And it has no place in any society.
There are
still so many
causes worth
sacrificing for.
There is still so
much history
yet to be made.
You can be the
generation to
ensure that
women are no
longer secondclass citizens
ON THE PRESIDENT
The truth is, I loved the life we had built for
our girls... I deeply loved the man I had built
that life with... and I didn’t want that to change
if he became president... I loved Barack just
the way he was... You see, even though back
then Barack was a senator and a presidential
candidate... to me, he was still the guy who’d
picked me up for our dates in a car that was so
rusted out, I could actually see the pavement
going by through a hole in the passenger side
door... he was the guy whose proudest possession was a coffee table he’d found in a dumpster, and whose only pair of decent shoes was
half a size too small... But when Barack started
telling me about his family – that’s when I
knew I had found a kindred spirit, someone
whose values and upbringing were so much
like mine. You see, Barack and I were both
raised by families who didn’t have much in
the way of money or material possessions but
who had given us something far more valuable
– their unconditional love, their unflinching
sacrifice, and the chance to go places they had
never imagined for themselves.
ON SELF-BELIEF
One of the lessons that I grew up with was
to always stay true to yourself and never
let what somebody else says distract you
from your goals. And so when I hear about
negative and false attacks, I really don’t
invest any energy in them, because I know
who I am.
ON SUCCESS
Success is only meaningful and enjoyable if
it feels like your own.
ON COURAGE
You may not always have a comfortable life
and you will not always be able to solve all
of the world’s problems at once but don’t
ever underestimate the importance you
can have because history has shown us that
courage can be contagious and hope can
take on a life of its own.
ON VALUES
Barack and I were raised with so many of
the same values, like you work hard for
what you want in life. That your word is
your bond, that you do what you say you
are going to do. That you treat people with
dignity and respect, even if you don’t know
them and even if you don’t agree with
them.
ON FRIENDSHIP
Do not bring people in your life who weigh
you down. And trust your instincts. Good
relationships feel good. They feel right. They
don’t hurt. They’re not painful. That’s not
just with somebody you want to marry, but
it’s with the friends that you choose. It’s with
the people you surround yourselves with.
ON RESPECT
Every mother works hard, and every
woman deserves to be respected.
ON EQUALITY
No country can ever truly flourish if it
stifles the potential of its women and
deprives itself of the contributions of half of
its citizens.
ON RELATIONSHIPS
You don’t want to be with a boy who is too
stupid to appreciate a smart young woman.
ON OPPORTUNITY
When you have worked hard, and done
well, and walked through that doorway of
opportunity, you do not slam it shut behind
you. You reach back.
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