Michelle Obama is the latest inspiring woman to contribute to Lena Dunham’s weekly Lenny newsletter. Writing on the issue of the 62 million girls who go without education worldwide, the First Lady got straight to the point that the problem isn’t just the lack of access to facilities, but the wider problem of attitudes and beliefs. She went on to detail “the belief that girls should be valued for their bodies, not their minds; the belief that girls simply aren’t worthy of an education, and their best chance in life is to be married off when they’re barely even teenagers and start having children of their own.”
This is apparently where it gets personal for Michelle. “I see myself in these girls — in their ambition and their determination to rise above their circumstances. And I believe that because you’re Lenny Letter readers — women who are talented, passionate, and ambitious — you’d see yourselves in these girls too.” She goes to on state that these girls deserve the same chances we all had to learn and grow and contribute to our families and societies, which is why she and Barack started Let Girls Learn. The initiative will see the US government work together with other governments, businesses and non-profit organizations across the world to invest in the education that girls deserve.
Today at SXSW, Michelle will be calling on people to help her take action and make change happen, bringing friends Diane Warren, Sophia Bush and Missy Elliott along for a talk moderated by Queen Latifah. The dream. Keeping girl power alive, the event will be followed by a midnight release of charity single meets global call to action This Is For My Girls, featuring the likes of Zendaya, Missy, Janelle Monae and Kelly Rowland, with all proceeds going to the Let Girls Learn fund.
Michelle’s Let Girls Learn talk is due to be streamed live at 11:30 EST.
Credits
Illustration Joan LeMay