Good morning!

A wonderful woman of the world…Our beloved FLOTUS.

From the NY Times with Michelle Obama on the cover.

To the First Lady, With Love

Four thank-you notes to Michelle Obama, who has spent the past eight years quietly and confidently changing the course of American history.

By Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie:

She had rhythm, a flow and swerve, hands slicing air, body weight moving from foot to foot, a beautiful rhythm. In anything else but a black American body, it would have been contrived. The three-quarter sleeves of her teal dress announced its appropriateness, as did her matching brooch. But the cut of the dress scorned any “future first lady” stuffiness; it hung easy on her, as effortless as her animation. And a brooch, Old World style accessory, yes, but hers was big and ebulliently shaped and perched center on her chest. Michelle Obama was speaking. It was the 2008 Democratic National Convention. My anxiety rose and swirled, watching and willing her to be as close to perfection as possible, not for me, because I was already a believer, but for the swaths of America that would rather she stumbled.

She first appeared in the public consciousness, all common sense and mordant humor, at ease in her skin. She had the air of a woman who could balance a checkbook, and who knew a good deal when she saw it, and who would tell off whomever needed telling off. She was tall and sure and stylish. She was reluctant to be first lady, and did not hide her reluctance beneath platitudes. She seemed not so much unique as true. She sharpened her husband’s then-hazy form, made him solid, more than just a dream.

But she had to flatten herself to better fit the mold of first lady. At the law firm where they met before love felled them, she had been her husband’s mentor; they seemed to be truly friends, partners, equals in a modern marriage in a new American century. Yet voters and observers, wide strips of America, wanted her to conform and defer, to cleanse her tongue of wit and barb. When she spoke of his bad morning-breath, a quirky and humanizing detail, she was accused of emasculating him.

Because she said what she thought, and because she smiled only when she felt like smiling, and not constantly and vacuously, America’s cheapest caricature was cast on her: the Angry Black Woman. Women, in general, are not permitted anger — but from black American women, there is an added expectation of interminable gratitude, the closer to groveling the better, as though their citizenship is a phenomenon that they cannot take for granted.

“I love this country,” she said to applause. She needed to say it — her salve to the hostility of people who claimed she was unpatriotic because she had dared to suggest that, as an adult, she had not always been proud of her country.

Of course she loved her country. The story of her life as she told it was wholesomely American, drenched in nostalgia: a father who worked shifts and a mother who stayed home, an almost mythic account of self-reliance, of moderation, of working-class contentment. But she is also a descendant of slaves, those full human beings considered human fractions by the American state. And ambivalence should be her birthright. For me, a foreign-raised person who likes America, one of its greatest curiosities is this: that those who have the most reason for dissent are those least allowed dissent.

Michelle Obama was speaking. I felt protective of her because she was speaking to an America often too quick to read a black woman’s confidence as arrogance, her straightforwardness as entitlement.

She was informal, colloquial, her sentences bookended by the word “see,” a conversational fillip that also strangely felt like a mark of authenticity. She seemed genuine. She was genuine. All over America, black women were still, their eyes watching a form of God, because she represented their image writ large in the world.

Her speech was vibrant, a success. But there was, in her eyes and beneath her delivery and in her few small stumbles, a glimpse of something somber. A tight, dark ball of apprehension. As though she feared eight years of holding her breath, of living her life with a stone in her gut.

Eight years later, her blue dress was simpler but not as eager to be appropriate; its sheen, and her edgy hoop earrings, made clear that she was no longer auditioning.

Her daughters were grown. She had shielded them and celebrated them, and they appeared in public always picture perfect, as though their careful grooming was a kind of reproach. She had called herself mom-in-chief, and cloaked in that nonthreatening title, had done what she cared about.

Michelle Obama is featured on one of the covers of T’s Oct. 23 Greats issue.

She embraced veterans and military families, and became their listening advocate. She threw open the White House doors to people on the margins of America. She was working class, and she was Princeton, and so she could speak of opportunity as a tangible thing. Her program Reach Higher pushed high schoolers to go further, to want more. She jumped rope with children on the White House grounds as part of her initiative to combat childhood obesity. She grew a vegetable garden and campaigned for healthier food in schools. She reached across borders and cast her light on the education of girls all over the world. She danced on television shows. She hugged more people than any first lady ever has, and she made “first lady” mean a person warmly accessible, a person both normal and inspirational and a person many degrees of cool.

She had become an American style icon. Her dresses and workouts. Her carriage and curves. Toned arms and long slender fingers. Even her favored kitten heels, for women who cannot fathom wearing shoes in the halfway house between flats and high heels, have earned a certain respect because of her. No public figure better embodies that mantra of full female selfhood: Wear what you like.

It was the 2016 Democratic Convention. Michelle Obama was speaking. She said “black boy” and “slaves,” words she would not have said eight years ago because eight years ago any concrete gesturing to blackness would have had real consequences.

She was relaxed, emotional, sentimental. Her uncertainties laid to rest. Her rhythm was subtler, because she no longer needed it as her armor, because she had conquered.

The insults, those barefaced and those adorned as jokes, the acidic scrutiny, the manufactured scandals, the base questioning of legitimacy, the tone of disrespect, so ubiquitous, so casual. She had faced them and sometimes she hurt and sometimes she blinked but throughout she remained herself.

Michelle Obama was speaking. I realized then that she hadn’t been waiting to exhale these past eight years. She had been letting that breath out, in small movements, careful because she had to be, but exhaling still.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is the author of the novel “Americanah” and the book-length essay “We Should All Be Feminists.” A recipient of a MacArthur Foundation “genius” grant, her words have been sampled by Beyoncé and, most recently, on clothing from Dior’s spring 2017 collection.

By Gloria Steinem:

Michelle Obama came into my life in stages. I knew that, like her husband, she was a Harvard-educated lawyer, but that unlike him, she had grown up on the South Side of Chicago, with parents who had not gone to college. When Barack Obama was a summer associate at her Chicago law firm, they met because she was his mentor. After his successful campaign for the U.S. Senate, I noticed that she chose not to go to Washington. Instead, he commuted to their home and two daughters in Chicago where Michelle had a big job as head of community affairs for a hospital.

But she really entered my imagination once she became first lady, a tall, strong, elegant and seriously smart woman who happened to live in the White House. She managed to convey dignity and humor at the same time, to be a mother of two daughters and insist on regular family dinners, and to take on health issues and a national food industry addicted to unhealthy profits. She did this despite an undertow of bias in this country that subtly questioned everything she did. Was she too strong, physically and intellectually, to be a proper first lady?

After a decade under a public microscope, she has managed what no other first lady — and few people in any public position — have succeeded in doing: She has lived a public life without sacrificing her privacy and authenticity. She made her husband both more human and effective as a president by being his interpreter and defender, but also someone we knew was capable of being his critic. Eventually, she spoke up about the pain of the racist assumptions directed at her, but she waited until her husband could no longer be politically punished for her honesty. And she has always been the best kind of mother, which means insisting that fathers be equal parents. All of this she has done with honesty, humor and, most important, kindness.

Recently, over the course of the Trump-Clinton presidential campaign, Michelle has become one of the most effective public speakers of our time. That’s serious. To be less serious, she has always been a woman who knows the difference between fashion (what outside forces tell you to wear) and style (the way you express a unique self). At one lunch in the White House for women who had been spokespeople and supporters in President Obama’s second campaign, she invited local public school children to sing and perform. Those students, mostly African-American kids, were spirited, talented and at ease in a White House that belongs to them as much as to anyone in this country, yet they wouldn’t have been there without Michelle.

What will she choose to do next? That’s up to her. She could do anything, from becoming a U.S. senator from Illinois to campaigning for the safety and education of girls globally. She could also choose to lead a private life. Whatever she decides, I trust her judgment.

Though I’m old enough to remember Eleanor and Franklin D. Roosevelt in the White House — and all the couples and families since — I have never seen such balance and equal parenting, such love, respect, mutuality and pleasure in each other’s company. We will never have a democracy until we have democratic families and a society without the invented categories of both race and gender. Michelle Obama may have changed history in the most powerful way — by example.

Gloria Steinem, a feminist activist and writer, has been touring America, campaigning for Hillary Clinton and promoting the paperback edition of her travelogue “My Life on the Road.”

By Jon Meacham:

On a lovely early autumn day in her final October in the White House, Michelle Obama stepped out onto a sunny South Lawn and, in a way, bid farewell. The setting was her celebrated organic kitchen garden, but the subtext seemed to go far beyond any single initiative. “I have to tell you that being here with all of you, overlooking this beautiful garden — and it is beautiful — it’s kind of an emotional moment,” Mrs. Obama said at a ceremony to unveil a bigger, fortified version of the garden. “We’re having a lot of these emotional moments because everything is the last. But this is particularly my baby, because this garden is where it all started. So we’re really coming full circle back to the very beginning.” She recalled conversations in 2008 about the role she might play in an Obama presidency — and noted, tellingly, that the garden emerged after “Barack actually won,” to which she added: “He won twice.” The gathered guests happily applauded.

There, in a way, was the essential Michelle Obama, or at least the essential observable version of herself: speaking of broad public good (the garden, which was part of her campaign against childhood obesity) while revealing an arch sense of competitiveness. My husband won; he won twice. As their history-making time in the White House comes to an end, it’s worth pondering the lessons of the Age of Obama. My own view is that both the president and the first lady have conducted themselves splendidly in the White House, managing the most difficult of tasks with apparent ease: projecting a grace that masked the ambition and the drive that took them, at early ages, to the pinnacle of American life.

In this they have kept faith with a tradition that, in our country, is as old as George Washington, who embodied the classical ideal of Cincinnatus, the reluctant leader summoned from his plow to lead the nation. President Obama gets much of the public credit for handling his eight years coolly, but the first lady has been a critical element of his success. She has chosen her shots carefully — not least in choosing to make the case against Donald Trump on the campaign trail in 2016 — and is leaving the country with a warm impression of an excellent mother, a steady spouse and a sensible, devoted American.

Not everyone agrees, of course; not everyone ever does. The Obama skeptics and the Obama haters have from time to time questioned her patriotism, but this is the same country that managed, in some quarters, to hold Eleanor Roosevelt in contempt. The important thing is that Mrs. Obama, a clear-eyed lawyer, found a way to withstand the scrutiny of the spotlight. In point of fact, she did more than withstand it. To borrow a phrase from William Faulkner, she not only endured it; she prevailed over it.

How? By finding, or appearing to find, that most elusive of things in the modern world: balance. She was not Mrs. Roosevelt or Mrs. Carter or Mrs. Reagan or Mrs. Clinton, playing roles in affairs of state. Instead she did what the first African-American first lady arguably had to do to play a successful public role. In Voltaire’s terms, she cultivated her own garden, never threatening and never intimidating her neighbors. Much more doubtless unfolded beneath the surface or behind closed doors; history will sort that out. For now, it is enough to say that she is leaving the White House a strong and popular figure with a lifetime of good will and great reservoirs of capital on which to draw as she and her husband write their next chapters.

Back in 2008, musing on the life she was about to enter, Mrs. Obama recalled doubts about her garden — a bit of projection, one suspects, for doubts about the entire presidential enterprise. “What if we planted this garden and nothing grew?” Mrs. Obama asked. “We didn’t know about the soil, or the sunlight. And it’s like, oh, my God, what if nothing grows? … It was like afterwards I remember telling Sam [Kass, the former White House senior advisor for nutrition], ‘This better work, buddy. This better work.’” And so it did.

Jon Meacham, a Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer, is the author, most recently, of “Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush.”

By Rashida Jones:

The first time I met Michelle Obama was at the White House as part of a mentoring initiative, for which the first lady had brought together a dynamic group of women to speak to urban teenage girls about their career goals. Olympians, actresses, producers, writers, an astronaut and an Air Force general gathered in the West Wing to greet Michelle before we headed out to various local schools. She was warm, gracious and charming. She thanked us for coming, hugged everybody and made us all feel like her friends. As first lady, she has ticked all the boxes: loving wife, protective mother, health and fitness advocate, garden enthusiast and, yes, style icon. These accomplishments have left traditionalists feeling satisfied.

But, as is always the way, her reputation as the perfect hostess invited criticism from progressives. Enter Michelle Obama, outspoken activist, a woman who isn’t afraid to remind us she is a proud African-American woman, which is, in itself, revolutionary. A former lawyer who speaks out on behalf of gay rights and gun control, she delivered an unforgettable speech at the Democratic National Convention earlier this year, shining a clear, bright light on our country’s shameful history. Suddenly, the progressives were pleased and the traditionalists were confused. The media wants to pin her down — they’ve been trying since Barack Obama took office in 2009. But you simply can’t.

Michelle Obama embodies the modern, American woman, and I don’t mean that in any platitudinous or vague way. Rarely can someone express their many identities at the same time while seeming authentic. My female friends and I often talk about feeling like we’re “too much.” We’re complicated; we want to be so many things. I want to be a boss and also be vulnerable. I want to be outspoken and respected, but also sexy and beautiful.

All women struggle to reconcile the different people that we are at all times, to merge our conflicting desires, to represent ourselves honestly and feel good about the inherent contradictions. But Michelle manages to do this with poise, regardless of the scrutiny. That, to me, is the best thing for feminism. Her individual choices force us to accept that being a woman isn’t just one thing. Or two things. Or three things. The position of first lady is, unfortunately, symbolic, and that makes it fair game for media analysis ad nauseam. But no think piece can fully encompass a real woman.

If feminism’s goal is equal opportunity and choice, Michelle makes me feel like every choice is available. You can go to Princeton and Harvard, you can rap with Missy Elliott, you can be a mother and a lawyer and a powerful orator. You can champion the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, while also caring about fashion. You can dance with Ellen and also fearlessly remind people, on live television, of the reality of your position: “I wake up every morning in a house that was built by slaves. And I watch my daughters, two beautiful, intelligent, black young women, playing with their dogs on the White House lawn.” You can be your husband’s partner and supporter, and also use your cultural and political capital to campaign for Hillary Clinton, unflinchingly standing up to her “locker room talk”-ing bully of an opponent with the battle cry “enough is enough!” — eloquently putting into words what a lot of people, myself included, had been feeling.

Michelle Obama will have her own legacy, separate from her husband’s. And it will be that she was the first first lady to show women that they don’t have to choose. That it’s okay to be everything.

Rashida Jones is a writer, actress and producer who stars in the TBS comedy series “Angie Tribeca,” and most recently co-wrote an episode of “Black Mirror,” premiering later this month on Netflix.

❤️💪🏽♀

Readers: I loved reading these. Makes me so proud over and over again of our amazing FLOTUS. I’m excited to see how she will bless us with her brilliance next.

What would you write in a thank-you note to FLOTUS?

Happy Sunday! BLOG ME. 

Vivian: I don’t know about always but thanks for the kudos. I bet you’re a force to reckon with in the courtroom. :)

You are so welcome, Peter. How are you?

Rolando: He caught me on a good day. And I agree with you; Alycedale is a sharp sister with a tongue of the same. And I mean that in a good way.

Speaking of…

Alycedale, Brie: “Specific is terrific.” And because of you two, I changed the title of yesterday’s write. It should’ve said White “Males” to begin with. Thanks for making such a valid point.

Ernesto: Your comment landed in spam. Sorry. I retrieved it and it has been posted as #6 yesterday.

Peace & Love & Good Health

Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the “Donate” button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my “Donate” page)

Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:

Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129

Thank you for your loyal support!

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008-2016

“Though she be but little, she be fierce.” – William Shakespeare Midsummer Night’s Dream 

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Good Monday morning.

Multi-media journalists face jail time after reporting on North Dakota pipeline protest

Investigative reporter and co-founder of Democracy Now!, Amy Goodman, is now facing riot charges in the state of North Dakota after her report on a Native American-led pipeline protest there went viral on Facebook.

Democracy Now! issued a statement about the new charges against Goodman late Saturday.

The news organization, which spun out of WBAI-FM, creates programming which is syndicated via radio, podcasts, cable television, public access television, live streams and Web downloads.

Goodman’s story, posted to Facebook on September 4th, has been viewed more than 14 million times on the social media platform, Democracy Now! said, and was picked up by mainstream media outlets and networks including CBS, NBC, NPR, CNN, MSNBC and The Huffington Post (a site owned by TechCrunch’s parent company Verizon).

Additionally, documentary filmmaker Deia Schlosberg, is facing felony and conspiracy charges that could carry a 45-year sentence for filming at the protest, IndieWire reports.

Edward Snowden noted Schlosberg’s predicament on Friday with a tweet that said, “This reporter is being prosecuted for covering the North Dakota oil protests. For reference, I face a mere 30 years.”

Authorities released Schlosberg, who also runs a production studio called Pale Blue Dot Media, after originally detaining her but they confiscated her footage and refused to release it according to public tweets from Josh Fox, a fellow filmmaker.

For those unfamiliar with the pipeline protests, the Standing Rock Sioux are seeking to halt the construction of a $3.8 billion pipeline saying its development will encroach on their tribal burial sites and taint their water supply at the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation.

The demonstrations in North Dakota have been ongoing for months. Native American advocates and environmentalists have protested the pipeline’s development in other cities and states, as well.

On October 10th, witnesses at a rally in Reno, Nevada captured footage of a pickup truck plowing into a group of activists protesting the pipeline’s development, and calling for Columbus Day to be changed to Indigenous Peoples’ Day in their state.

Several posted their footage and thoughts about the apparent attack on Facebook as well. The Reno incident injured five and sent one to the hospital. The rally was organized by the American Indian Movement of Northern Nevada (AIMNN).

It remains to be seen whether the charges against Goodman, Schlosberg and other journalists covering the Standing Rock protests against the Dakota Access pipeline will stick.

But these cases highlight the increasing power, and risks, associated with online distribution for news stories covered by independents, and earlier missed by mainstream networks. Virality and independence, it seems, can attract prosecutorial ire.

*****

Readers: These people should be protected by the First Amendment. It is not a crime to report what is happening. These reporters were simply doing their jobs, documenting protests, exercising their First Amendment rights. Goodman was not rioting – she was there documenting what was happening – again doing her job.

How can this woman, a reporter, Deia get 45 year sentence when Snowden is only facing 30? Really? The freedom of the press is a fundamental right in our free society. This is so unjust. In my opinion, this is absolutely crazy, and something everyone should be concerned about when it comes to our freedoms.

Is this surprising that this is happening to two women?

I had technical difficulties this morning and I  am running late so please pick up where I am leaving off and support our reporters in their right to do their jobs so that all of us can be informed.  I signed the petition, I HOPE you will too. Thanks to Josh Fox, her associate, for his support in getting the charges against Schlosberg dropped. Need more info? Click here.

Beverly: Woo hoo! Thank you. Take your friends with you too. No one should believe that their vote doesn’t count.

Zen Lill: Happy Belated Birthday! Happy to hear you enjoyed yourself.

Nora: You and me both. It is so much more than just getting Hillary in. We need the Senate too. We can’t celebrate yet – this is no shoo-in. Encourage all you know to go vote. I wold love to have the House too.

Got to run…

Peace out. 

Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the “Donate” button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my “Donate” page)

Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:

Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129

Thank you for your loyal support!

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008-2016

“Though she be but little, she be fierce.” – William Shakespeare Midsummer Night’s Dream 

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"

Good Sunday Morning!

I have been so focused on posting writes on this year’s presidential elections and all the atrocities that have been happening over the last month or so in support of the many who have lost their lives, that I’ve missed out on posting some amazing things that have been happening with women. The inaugural United State of Women Summit took place in Washington last month.

Here’s a write from NBC News that I found that summed up a lot of what I have been reading. Two of my fave ladies (FLOTUS & OPRAH) + our beloved POTUS.

WASHINGTON, D.C.— Monica Y. Johnson was just a baby when she lost her mother to violence. Her childhood was spent being shuffled around to multiple homes, she recalls, and her memories of that stage of her life are painful.

“I’ve dealt with abuse, abandonment…,” explains the Texas resident. “As a kid, I was never hugged.” Yet through the power of a college education, perseverance and faith, Johnson is now a successful businesswoman, life coach, minister and author. In 2015, she launched a non-profit called `That Girl is S.M.A.R.T.—Successful, Magnificent, Authentic, Resourceful, and Talented.’

The organization hosts bi-monthly meetings for girls and young women (ages 6-to-18), providing them with information on topics ranging from suicide prevention and sexual trafficking to building self-esteem. “I want them to know that what happens in your life doesn’t have to define you,” says Johnson, 47, who’s a wife and mother of an adult daughter. “You can succeed. It’s about empowering each other, especially the next generation.”

Johnson is among thousands of women who attended the United State of Women Summit hosted by the White House on Tuesday. The inaugural event was designed to bring stakeholders together for dialogue and advocacy around issues that impact women and families.

The confab was expected to draw upwards of 5,000 women (and some men) from across the country and world. Early Tuesday morning, a line of well-dressed participants eagerly awaited entry to the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. Inside the cavernous space, girl power anthems blared through speakers and large screen televisions gave a birds’ eye view of the stage that was filled throughout the day with heavy hitters and star power.

President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, First Lady Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey, and actress/activist Kerry Washington were among those on the agenda. Attorney General Loretta Lynch, Rep. Nancy Pelosi and mogul Warren Buffett addressed the audience, along with a host of business, political, and community leaders.

“Today, we come together to both celebrate the progress we have made, and turn our collective focus toward the future, and all we still must do—together-to achieve true gender equality,” said Valerie Jarrett, Senior Advisor to the President and Chair of the White House Council on Women and Girls, which Obama established by executive order in 2009. Along with Tina Tchen—Chief of Staff to the First Lady—Jarrett hosted the historic summit.

Sessions ran the gamut: Educational Opportunity, Economic Empowerment, Violence Against Women, along with Entrepreneurship/Business Innovation, Leadership and Civic Engagement and Health/Wellness. Speakers such as Dr. Lori Wilson, a surgical oncologist at Howard University Hospital and a breast cancer survivor, shared stories and expertise. “It’s so essential that we address those issues that are barriers to women being equal.”

Early on, Biden gave a rousing speech, one that focused on combatting sexual violence against women. He spoke at length about what’s happening on many college campuses across America, where data shows that 1 in 5 female students have been sexually assaulted. He urged men to speak out against rape, too. “If we free women, we free men. We free humanity. We make it all better.”

Mid-afternoon, President Obama delivered an address that lasted about 30 minutes. The Commander-in-Chief was introduced by Mikaila Ulmer, 11, Founder/CEO of Me & the Bees Lemonade; the young African American entrepreneur gained buzz earlier this year after appearing on the television series “Shark Tank,” and nabbing a deal with Whole Foods.

RELATED: How This 11-Year-Old Turned Something Scary Into Something Sweet

“What an amazing young lady,” said the president after giving Ulmer a hug. “I will be back on the job market in seven months, so I hope she is hiring,” Obama joked.

Telling the crowd “this is what a feminist looks like,” the president spoke about changing the cultural paradigm around gender, which he said “shines a particularly unforgiving light on women and girls of color — about how they look, or how they feel or what they should and should not do.”

The president said the nation must reject stereotypes about the abilities of women and girls, and he praised the historic presidential candidacy of Hillary Clinton. Obama also spoke about the progress his administration has made to advance policies that impact women, while acknowledging that more work needs to be done. He appealed to Congress to help enact more laws that benefit women.

“We need equal pay for equal work. We need paid family and sick leave. We need affordable child care, we’ve got to raise the minimum wage,” said Obama. “If we were truly a nation of family values, we wouldn’t put up with the fact that a woman cannot even get a day off to give birth. We need paid maternity and paternity leave, too.”

The summit was a multigenerational gathering that drew different backgrounds and perspectives. Women networked, took selfies and moved among the dozens of exhibitors who represented government agencies, non-profits and think tanks. Sponsors included the Aspen Institute, Civic Nation, the State Department and the Department of Labor; the Ford Foundation, Tory Burch Foundation, Pepsico Foundation and others lent support.

US President Barack Obama embraces 11-year-old Mikaila Ulmer social entrepreneur of “Me and the Bees Lemonade” as he arrives to speak during the United State of Women Summit at the Washington Convention Center in Washington, DC, June 14, 2016. (SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images)

“Being among all these sisters—black, white, Indian, Hispanic—is a celebration of accomplishment,” said Nadine Thompson, a New Hampshire entrepreneur who founded the lifestyle company, Soul Purpose. “If you’re here, it’s because you are doing something to uplift women.”

Thompson was among a group of women selected to attend the event through the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women initiative, which provides a business and management education to underserved female entrepreneurs.

Jessica Johnson-Cope, who heads a Bronx-based family enterprise—Johnson Security Bureau—was also part of the cohort. “To see all the women who are here, being involved, being impactful, it’s been great.”

The day ended with Michelle Obama and Oprah engaged in a sit-down that encompassed topics such as self-worth and accomplishing one’s goals. The First Lady said that she often tells her two daughters and her mentees, “Our first job is to get to know ourselves.”

It’s worth clicking here to hear the wise words of this young lady.

❤️♀❤️

Readers: Thanks to all who attended this historical summit in support of women and girls. I so wish I could’ve been there. I have heard nothing but wonderful things. Were any of you there?

Blog me. 

✌🏽♀ ❤️

Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the “Donate” button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my “Donate” page)

Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:

Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129

Thank you for your loyal support!

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008-2016

“Though she be but little, she be fierce.” – William Shakespeare Midsummer Night’s Dream 

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"

 Good Morning!

Whew – what a night, right?

Congratulations Hillary Clinton for breaking the glass ceiling! 

I’m so proud. I loved last night…I loved the last 4 days. Clinton is so smart, tenacious, committed, compassionate, competent, and completely qualified to be our president. She will not quit on us. I will not quit on her. #GirlBoss

If there is anyone reading this blog (and there were many in yesterday’s blog) that still needs convincing, read this:

Let Me Remind You Fuckers Who I Am

by Hillary Clinton

What the fuck is your problem, America??

I’m Hillary goddamn Clinton. I’m a political prodigy, have been since I was 16. I have an insane network of powerful friends. I’m willing to spend the next eight years catching shit on all sides, all so I can fix this fucking country for you. And all you little bitches need to do is get off your asses one goddamn day in November.

“Oh but what about your eeeemaaaaillls???” Shut the fuck up. Seriously, shut the fuck up and listen for one fucking second.

Here’s all you need to know about me:

• In 1992, I said I was proud to have followed my career instead of baking cookies.
• The GOP fucking dragged me for it. They made me bake cookies. They’re scared of me.
• Every time I have a job, y’all love me. Every time I run for anything, the GOP breaks out the big guns again and fucks me up good. And apparently it fucking works.

But you know what? I don’t fucking care. If I gave two shits about the haters I would’ve dropped the game decades ago.

You know why I keep fighting? Because we all want the same shit. We want economic and racial justice, we want to seriously attack climate change, we want everyone to be able to afford college and health care and housing and food, we want women to be treated like humans, yada yada yada.

And I’m the only person in this goddamn country who knows how to do it.

Because of course I do. Because I’ve been preparing my whole fucking life for this job. So stop making me dab on Ellen and just give me a fucking chance already.

If it seems like I have contempt for the American voter, it’s because I do. Frankly, most of you are fucking stupid. Most of you have no goddamn idea what it takes to run a country. I mean god damn, almost half of you think God created the Earth 10,000 years ago!

What the actual fuck????

Look, this is the big leagues. If you think any problem has a tweetable solution, you’re just wrong. If you think “border wall” or “muslims = bad” is gonna solve our problems, I don’t have time for your shit.

This is literally why we have a representative government. I know you don’t want to read long, boring things. So I do it for you, and I ask a bunch of smart people, and we come up with shit that works. Here’s my solution on energy. Here’s my solution on Wall Street. Here’s my solution on jobs. I have fucking binders full of this shit and you know it. I’m so fucking ready, America.

The GOP just spent their entire convention fantasizing about literally imprisoning me. They are terrified. They know what I can do.

I’ve spent my life clawing my way into a system that’s terrified of change. A system that just wants to let rich white dudes be rich white dudes. And holy shit, you guys, I could not have picked a better opponent for my final boss battle.

So lemme sign off with the same Nancy Scheibner poem I quoted back in 1969 (when I gave the commencement speech at my own fucking graduation, btw).

My entrance into the world of so-called “social problems”

Must be with quiet laughter, or not at all.

The hollow men of anger and bitterness

The bountiful ladies of righteous degradation

All must be left to a bygone age.

And the purpose of history is to provide a receptacle

For all those myths and oddments

Which oddly we have acquired

And from which we would become unburdened

To create a newer world

To translate the future into the past.

We have no need of false revolutions

In a world where categories tend to tyrannize our minds

And hang our wills up on narrow pegs.

It is well at every given moment to seek the limits in our lives.

And once those limits are understood

To understand that limitations no longer exist.

Earth could be fair. And you and I must be free

Not to save the world in a glorious crusade

Not to kill ourselves with a nameless gnawing pain

But to practice with all the skill of our being

The art of making possible.

(Flip flop my ass.)

GIRL♡♀♡POWER

Lol. I’m having so much fun this morning.

This is for you Hillary and all us girlz and guys who are in this fight with you:

******

Readers: On a serious note, we have 101 days left to make this happen. Let’s do this. #GoHillary

Happy Friday! Flap your lips. Blog me. 

✌🏽& ❤️

PS: Loved her all in white. That’s my stylist side talkin’ 😘

Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the “Donate” button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my “Donate” page)

Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:

Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129

Thank you for your loyal support!

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008-2016

“Though she be but little, she be fierce.” – William Shakespeare Midsummer Night’s Dream 

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"

Good morning! 

I cried last night. I was glued to my television watching President Obama give his speech at the DNC – it was bittersweet.

On the one hand, I am so going to miss him, his optimism, humbleness, boldness, faith, fairness, his way with words that inspires me to no end. I could keep going I admire the man that much. He truly is a charismatic leader, and I know I’m about to sound banal, and probably a little mushy too, but he makes me want to be a better person…and make the world a better place. OK, I said it. But that’s how I feel he moves me so much.

Thank you Mr. President for all that you have done and continue to do for our country. I am so grateful. #LoveOurPresident

And on the other hand, I’m thrilled to welcome Hillary, our first woman president. How awesome is this for our sisters, for all!? As Michelle Obama stated, “And because of Hillary Clinton, my daughters and all our sons and daughters now take for granted that a woman can be president of the United States.”

And as Obama said last night: “There has not been a man or a woman..not me, not Bill, nobody more qualified than Hillary Clinton, to serve as president of the United States of America.” I’m excited to do all I can to support her in becoming president, and helping her to be successful by taking the reins and finishing the job that Obama so successfully started for our already great country. (That’s a snub to you Trump.)

If we learn one thing, please let it be that we don’t get Lazy and go through another four (or eight) years without coattails. I know…I know…you’re probably sick of me saying it but I can’t help it. It’s so important we all remember that it is US who makes the decisions of who gets to represent us. We can get so much more done when we have the support we need.

#DontBooVote ~Obama.  Love that line.

Enough said for now. But as you know me, this won’t be the last time I’ll say this. :)

Onto today’s write. I gave blog time to our First Lady, Michelle Obama, whom I too will miss dearly. I know that beside every great man is a woman who is equally great. Thank you Michelle for being that woman and all that you have done for our country. Her man, our president deserves blog time too.

From the Huff Po: (Unlike the write, I’m posting his full speech.)

Obama Praises ‘The America I Know,’ Says Hillary Clinton Is The One To Lead It

President Barack Obama on Wednesday night told Americans they face a stark choice in November ― an unusual election that has raised “fundamental” questions “about who we are as a people,” and pitted one of the most qualified candidates in history, Hillary Clinton, against an untrustworthy con man, Donald Trump.

In a Democratic National Convention speech that was at turns emotional and blistering and ended with Clinton appearing by his side, Obama began with a recitation of his accomplishments in office ― reducing unemployment and saving the auto industry, passing health care reform, a nuclear agreement with Iran and the killing of Osama bin Laden.

He acknowledged problems that the country still faces ― people struggling with bills, an epidemic of gun violence ― but he also professed his strong belief in the country’s ability to fix its problems, even if “change is never easy, and never quick.”

“The America I know is full of courage and optimism and ingenuity,” Obama said, contrasting this vision with the dark, pessimistic message that came from the Republican convention in Cleveland last week.

“What we heard was a deeply pessimistic vision of a country where we turn against each other, and turn away from the rest of the world,” Obama said. “There were no serious solutions to pressing problems ― just the fanning of resentment and blame and anger and hate.”

After laying out those two visions, Obama made his case for Clinton, reminding people not only of her experience and expertise but also of her record of championing groups such as children and veterans.

Obama made a particularly big deal about Clinton’s commitment to public service, in an apparent attempt to turn one of her biggest political liabilities ― her experience in politics ― into an asset. “She knows she’s made mistakes, just like I have; just like we all do. That’s what happens when we try.”

Obama likened Clinton’s grit and determination to Theodore Roosevelt’s. “Hillary Clinton is that woman in the arena.  She’s been there for us ― even if we haven’t always noticed.”

And then it was time to talk about Trump. Previous speakers ― including Vice President Joe Biden and vice presidential nominee Tim Kaine ― had already worked up the crowd. Obama picked up where they left off ― at first, by adopting the same mocking tone he’d used in 2011 at the White House Correspondents Dinner.

“He’s not really a plans guy,” Obama said of the real estate mogul turned Republican nominee. “Not really a facts guy, either. He calls himself a business guy, which is true, but I have to say, I know plenty of businessmen and women who’ve achieved success without leaving a trail of lawsuits and unpaid workers and people feeling like they got cheated.”

But Obama quickly turned serious, mentioning Trump’s record in business as proof that he would not protect the economic interests of everyday Americans. “Does anyone really believe,” Obama said, “that a guy who’s spent his 70 years on this earth showing no regard for working people is suddenly going to be your champion? Your voice?”

He also questioned Trump’s ability to protect Americans from foreign threats: “He cozies up to Putin, praises Saddam Hussein, and tells the NATO allies that stood by our side after 9/11 that they have to pay up if they want our protection. Well, America’s promises do not come with a price tag. We meet our commitments.”

At one point, Obama invoked an iconic figure from Republican Party history to press his case. “Ronald Reagan,” Obama explained, “called America ‘a shining city on a hill.’ Donald Trump calls it ‘a divided crime scene’ that only he can fix. …  He’s just offering slogans, and he’s offering fear. He’s betting that if he scares enough people, he might score just enough votes to win this election.”

“That is another bet that Donald Trump will lose,” Obama continued. “Because he’s selling the American people short. We are not a fragile or frightful people. Our power doesn’t come from some self-declared savior promising that he alone can restore order. We don’t look to be ruled.”

But the strongest part of his speech came at the end ― when, after painting Trump as somebody who doesn’t believe in America, Obama reasserted his own belief that democracy can work and that, given the chance, they will make the right choices for the country.

“That’s America,” Obama said. “Those bonds of affection; that common creed. We don’t fear the future; we shape it, embrace it, as one people, stronger together than we are on our own.”

Obama’s speech brought the partisan crowd to its feet ― and the roars grew louder when Clinton made her dramatic, if predictable, entrance onstage to join him. The two exchanged words, embraced and then stood on the stage soaking in the applause as the convention’s third night drew to a close.

Readers: It was an amazing night to remember. Although Obama has passed the baton to Clinton, there is still 6 months left in his presidency. And Obama is no lame duck. Let’s continue to support him.

Blog me.

✌🏽&❤️

Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the “Donate” button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my “Donate” page)

Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:

Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129

Thank you for your loyal support!

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008-2016

“Though she be but little, she be fierce.” – William Shakespeare Midsummer Night’s Dream 

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"