Barack Obama makes case for more women in leadership: ‘It’s old men not getting out of the way’
The former president noted that men in global leadership positions should know that they are "not there for life" and that women should get more deference
[griojw id=”L2GcgR3a” playerid=””]
If there was more female leadership in the world, there would be fewer problems. It may not be the first time that’s been said, but former President Barack Obama is the latest to say it for everyone to hear.
According to the BBC, while at an event in Singapore, Obama expressed his belief that older men clinging to power have caused more harm than good on the world stage.
READ MORE: For Barack Obama and Deval Patrick, a long friendship and political bond
“If you look at the world and look at the problems it’s usually old people, usually old men, not getting out of the way,” the former president said.
He also discussed the benefits of women being in positions of power and adding their fresh perspectives.
“Now women, I just want you to know; you are not perfect, but what I can say pretty indisputably is that you’re better than us [men],” he continued, adding, “I’m absolutely confident that for two years if every nation on earth was run by women, you would see a significant improvement across the board on just about everything… living standards and outcomes.”
READ MORE: Obama: Americans must not let racist views become normalized
“You are not there for life,” he pointed out to any men in leadership roles who may have been listening. “You are not there in order to prop up your own sense of self-importance or your own power.”
This isn’t the first time that Obama has supported having more women leaders. Newsweek reports that in a recently released book about the relationship between Obama and former vice president Joe Biden, he made it clear that when he left the white house he had hopes of passing his presidency over to a woman.
In 2018, while delivering the 2018 Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture in Johannesburg, he also made this case, stating, “Women, in particular, by the way, I want you to get more involved because men have been getting on my nerves lately. I mean, every day, I read the newspaper and I just think like, brothers what’s wrong with you guys? What’s wrong with us?”
You Might Like
