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"I know you're really here to see Michelle or Oprah; I cannot compete with them," President Obama began his speech to thunderous applause at Tuesday's United State of Women Summit [1], before continuing: "But I did want to stop by and make one thing very clear: I may be a little grayer than I was eight years ago, but this is what a feminist looks like."
The commander in chief then went on to discuss major issues, such as maternal leave, birth control, and equal pay, that affect women in the United States on a daily basis. However, President Obama was simply setting the stage for his wife and an impressive panel of powerful, inspiring women to celebrate female accomplishments and discuss next steps toward equality.
When First Lady Michelle Obama sat down with Oprah Winfrey to kick off the State of Women dinner, they tackled a myriad of important subjects: girls' education, women's roles in the household and workplace, and how men can better serve the gender equality movement. When Oprah asked Obama what men can do to improve the state of women, the First Lady responded with a call to action: "Be better. Be better fathers. Be better husbands. Be better employers."
She is no stranger to a family that values equality [2], and the FLOTUS encouraged American men to follow her husband's inspiring example: "Being President doesn't change who you are, it reveals who you are." Furthermore, she called on women to "surround yourself with people that uplift you." When it comes to women's rights, First Lady Obama said, "The work always continues. We can never be complacent and think that we have arrived." And complacent she is not — Obama announced $20M in new commitments [3] to her Let Girls Learn initiative to further provide education for girls around the world.
Watch the President and First Lady's full speeches above, then follow along with the State of Women summit on Twitter [4] and the #StateOfWomen hashtag [5] for more highlights from the event.
"My hope is that people leave here inspired and ready to do something." – @FLOTUS [6] on The United #StateofWomen [7] Summit
— UnitedStateofWomen (@USWomen2016) June 14, 2016 [8]
"This is what a feminist looks like." -@POTUS [9] speaking at The United #StateofWomen [10] Summit pic.twitter.com/eD92rNZS4S [11]
— UnitedStateofWomen (@USWomen2016) June 14, 2016 [12]
"The work that we're doing on girls' education is something I'll do the rest of my life." —The First Lady on #LetGirlsLearn [13]. #StateOfWomen [14]
— The First Lady (@FLOTUS) June 14, 2016 [15]
"Today, more women are choosing to be single—and all Americans are able to marry whoever they love." —@POTUS [16] #StateOfWomen [17]
— White House Live (@WHLive) June 14, 2016 [18]
"What can men do?" —@Oprah [19]
"Be better." —The First Lady#StateOfWomen [20]— The First Lady (@FLOTUS) June 14, 2016 [21]
"Today, thanks to the Affordable Care Act, birth control is free." #StateOfWomen [22] #ThanksObamacare [23] pic.twitter.com/oqEPYGkdJe [24]
— Planned Parenthood (@PPact) June 14, 2016 [25]
"Our first job in life as women is to get to know ourselves." —The First Lady to @Oprah [26] at the #StateOfWomen [27] Summit pic.twitter.com/doavJCxvIU [28]
— The First Lady (@FLOTUS) June 14, 2016 [29]
"Women are leading America at every level of society, from Hollywood to Silicon Valley, from the c-suite to the federal bench" —@POTUS [30]
— White House Live (@WHLive) June 14, 2016 [31]
"Surround yourself with people that uplift you." - @FLOTUS [32] #StateOfWomen [33] 💪💙
— AmyPoehlerSmartGirls (@smrtgrls) June 14, 2016 [34]
"We need to keep changing a culture that shines a particularly unforgiving light on women and girls of color." -@POTUS [35] #StateOfWomen [36]
— Valerie Jarrett (@vj44) June 14, 2016 [37]
"Our workplace policies still look like they're straight out of Mad Men. " —@POTUS [38] #StateOfWomen [39] pic.twitter.com/zgwvO8OlIV [40]
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 14, 2016 [41]
"The work always continues. We can never be complacent and think that we have arrived." @FLOTUS [42] #StateOfWomen [43] pic.twitter.com/7tNB09ewgK [44]
— White House Af-Am Ed (@AfAmEducation) June 14, 2016 [45]