This week marks the notoriously busy season for world diplomats as they gather in NYC at the U.N. Headquarters for the commencement of the 71st United Nations General Assembly. First Lady Michelle Obama kicked the week off (and already stole the show, in our opinion) with a characteristically fabulous event for the spouses of foreign leaders and Chiefs of States at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theater. A program of approximately one hour and thirty minutes focused on global girls’ empowerment along with powerful performances from the casts of the hit Broadway shows Beautiful, Waitress, Wicked and The Color Purple. “As spouses of world leaders, so many of us here in this room have platforms to tell these stories and bring people together to take action for these girls,” she reminded them.
Amongst the crowded Broadway Theater filled with foreign diplomats, Broadway stars, and over a hundred Girl Scouts were 19 Her Campus members! Three representatives from Her Campus at Old Westbury were lucky enough to attend. The opportunity arose after receiving an email that Her Campus was given 25 seats to the event and whoever replied the quickest would be able to attend. Obviously, it was the hastiest email we have ever sent.
The performance started off with emcee Stephen Colbert, of CBS’s The Late Show, who reminded students of how lucky we are to have access to quality education. He accurately stated, “Kids here are praying for snow days while some other kids are just praying for school days.” Colbert then introduced the first lady who elaborated on how girls around the world face unimaginable adversity and how she has met many that have stood up and been “champions” such as about Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani education activist Mrs. Obama helped to put in the spotlight. The FLOTUS illuminated her foundation Let Girls Learn, “a global initiative aimed at helping adolescent girls attain a quality education that empowers them to achieve their full potential.” Michelle Obama pointed out that a shocking “62 million girls worldwide are not in school.” Though the first lady does not make executive decisions nor does she have a budget of her own, Let Girls Learn exists to help more girls gain an education and is supported by countries all over the world. Her goals for the initiative include “inspiring girls worldwide to be champions,” granting girls the education they deserve, and therefore inspiring other girls to do the same. She added that she will continue with this movement even after she leaves the White House.
Following the First Lady, we had the honor of listening to Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan who founded both the Queen Rania Teacher Academy, whose mission is to empower educators, and the “I Am Change” children’s museum exhibit which aims to involve children in water and energy conservation. Despite her remarkable impact, the Queen noted that overall “they don’t come as committed as Michelle Obama.” She then spoke about the difficulties girls experience in her country due to conflict and how this prevents them from attending school. Too often “the casualty of violence is education,” she remarked. The girls she has met, however, “rise out of the ashes of conflict” and do not let it define them. She continued on to explain that these girls are really no different than us and have the same dreams. “Girls from Jordan are very much like you; they take selfies- boy do they take selfies- and they listen to Selena Gomez!” According to the Queen of Jordan, friends come and go and trends change but “education stays deep inside of you.” She ended by describing what she calls the “reverse domino effect” in which women lift each other up and help each other to affect positive changes.
Next, three young women from Jordan, Pakistan and Malawi shared their stories about overcoming adversity and achieving their goals of receiving an education. Each woman was so inspiring and moving, making us grateful for the opportunities we have been granted as college students here in the United States. Noor Abu Ghazaleh of Jordan, a 24 year old accountant at one of the best firms in her country, spoke about girls from Jordan “silently crying in pain” because of their daily struggles. She believes education should be available for all and that all girls deserve to be given a voice. In some cases, it is against the law for girls to attend school in Jordan and despite a 1-2 hour commute, Noor graduated from her university. Next was Summyka Qadir of Pakistan, a 17 year old medical student on scholarship who came from an impoverished family. She has become a pioneer in education in her hometown and even teaches young children in the community. Finally, Halima Robert’s story seemed to move the audience immensely. Halima lives in Malawi and her hand was given up for marriage to a 30 year old man at just 15 years old because her grandmother could no longer afford to support her. She insisted that her husband enroll her back in school and in the meantime the USAID took up her cause considering she was under 18, the legal age that you can be married in Malawi. Thankfully, the marriage was annulled. Halima’s speech was translated by a woman standing behind her but nonetheless everyone could sense the passion and fearlessness in booming voice.
Rightly following Halima was the first lady of her country, Dr. Gertrude Mutharika, who informed us that now, many marriages like Halima’s are being annulled. She mentioned the many obstacles posed for young African women such as the threat of HIV/AIDS and how getting older makes it even more difficult for women to pursue their educations. She finished by saying that her initiative seeks to “fight gender inequality and break the poverty cycle” and that “a better tomorrow starts with today.”
September 19th, 2016 is a day that will be forever etched into our memories. We agreed that it was truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and the emotions that transpired were indescribable. We are certain that we were not alone when we were brought to tears multiple times throughout the program. We shared a room with Michelle Obama, First Lady of the United States, as well as so many other inspiring and humbling women including some of New York’s finest Broadway performers. We were reminded to appreciate our education more than ever and left hoping to raise awareness for 62 million girls dreaming of an education as valuable as the ones we have been lucky enough to receive.