equality | The Obama Diary

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Barack Obama: “This Is What a Feminist Looks Like”

There are a lot of tough aspects to being President. But there are some perks too. Meeting extraordinary people across the country. Holding an office where you get to make a difference in the life of our nation. Air Force One. But perhaps the greatest unexpected gift of this job has been living above the store. for the past seven and a half years, that commute has been reduced to 45 seconds—the time it takes to walk from my living room to the Oval Office. As a result, I’ve been able to spend a lot more time watching my daughters grow up into smart, funny, kind, wonderful young women. The progress we’ve made in the past 100 years, 50 years, and, yes, even the past eight years has made life significantly better for my daughters than it was for my grandmothers. And I say that not just as President but also as a feminist. Now, the most important people in my life have always been women. I was raised by a single mom, who spent much of her career working to empower women in developing countries.

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I watched as my grandmother, who helped raise me, worked her way up at a bank only to hit a glass ceiling. I’ve seen how Michelle has balanced the demands of a busy career and raising a family. Like many working mothers, she worried about the expectations and judgments of how she should handle the trade-offs, knowing that few people would question my choices. So we need to break through these limitations. We need to keep changing the attitude that raises our girls to be demure and our boys to be assertive, that criticizes our daughters for speaking out and our sons for shedding a tear. We need to keep changing the attitude that punishes women for their sexuality and rewards men for theirs. We need to keep changing the attitude that permits the routine harassment of women, whether they’re walking down the street or daring to go online. We need to keep changing the attitude that teaches men to feel threatened by the presence and success of women. As a parent, helping your kids to rise above these constraints is a constant learning process. Michelle and I have raised our daughters to speak up when they see a double standard or feel unfairly judged based on their gender or race—or when they notice that happening to someone else. It’s important for them to see role models out in the world who climb to the highest levels of whatever field they choose. And yes, it’s important that their dad is a feminist, because now that’s what they expect of all men.

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We are so lucky this man is our president glamour.com/story/glamour-…
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Dana Schwartz (@DanaSchwartzzz) August 04, 2016

President Obama reflects on his experience as a feminist—and his hopes to continue building toward gender equality. ofa.bo/2aB6Lrl
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Barack Obama (@BarackObama) August 05, 2016

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President Obama marks his 55th birthday with a @glamourmag essay on feminism. glmr.co/DxSS0vP https://t.co/UbIJMfzM2K
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Jamil Smith (@JamilSmith) August 04, 2016

"It's important...their dad is a feminist, because now that's what they expect from all men" —@POTUS to @GlamourMag bit.ly/2aVuLW5
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Valerie Jarrett (@vj44) August 05, 2016

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