The Clinton Crusade

This past weekend’s New York Times magazine was dedicated to women’s rights and featured a revealing interview with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, entitled “A New Gender Agenda”.  Writer Mark Landler explored Hillary’s unique grasp on her role as Secretary of State- one that puts the empowerment of women at the forefront of our foreign policy.
   
Already, Hillary has pushed Obama to institute the position of Ambassador at Large for Global Women’s issues, and recruited Melanne Verveer to fill it.  Melanne served as chief of staff during Hillary’s campaign, and before that as the Executive VP of People for the American Way.  Most notably, she is the CEO of Vital Voices, one my favorite charities that empowers emerging women leaders. Melanne played a crucial part in establishing the President’s Interagency Council on Women and is fiercely dedicated to progressing women’s rights.  Both Melanne and Hillary are valuable members of Obama’s cabinet who are sure to elevate the importance of gender inequality throughout their tenure.

In the interview,  Hillary eloquently declared her stance on the blockades of women: “I believe that the transformation of women’s roles is the last great impediment to universal progress – that we have made progress on many other aspects of human nature that used to be discriminatory bars to people’s full participation.  But in too many places and too many ways, the oppression of women stands as a stark reminder of how difficult it is to realize people’s full potential.”  

As we all all well know, the first step to solving a problem is acknowledgement that it exists. My hat goes off to Hillary and Melanne for shedding light on the importance on both addressing and rectifying the plight of women around the globe. They bring light and hope to the future of women everywhere.