Former first lady Michelle Obama will be inducted in the National Women’s Hall of Fame along with eight other women breaking barriers. The organization will hold an in-person induction ceremony on October 2, 2021.
“The first Black person to serve in the role—Michelle Obama has emerged as one of the most influential and iconic women of the 21st century. During her time in the White House, from 2009-2017, she established herself as a strong advocate for women and girls in the U.S. and around the world,” per the organization’s website.
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“As First Lady, she created: Let’s Move!, a program aimed at ending childhood obesity; the Reach Higher Initiative to help students navigate and better understand job opportunities and get the education necessary for these jobs; Joining Forces, an initiative she co-lead with Dr. Biden to support military veterans, service members, and military families; and Let Girls Learn, a program to support adolescent girls’ education around the world.
During her eight years as First Lady, Michelle Obama helped create the most welcoming and inclusive White House in history, transforming the White House into the “People’s House…””
Additional honorees are the late science fiction writer, Octavia Butler, the late mathematician Katherine Johnson and former chairperson and chief executive officer of PepsiCo Indra Nooyi.
The event will be held at the National Women’s Hall of Fame Grounds in Seneca Falls, NY, on October 2, 2021. Tickets sales will be open when safety protocols for in-person events are more clear. But there will be an option to register for the live stream version closer to the date.
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The National Women’s Hall of Fame began in 1969, and it’s the nation’s oldest membership organization dedicated to celebrating great women and their achievements.
According to the organization’s website, its mission is “showcasing great women…Inspiring all!” It continues to say:
“We are achieving our mission in a variety of ways while preserving our historical roots through the induction of great women into the Hall of Fame. Our comprehensive programming and multiple organizational venues give potential members and supporters several ways to become engaged with the Hall and the Inductees, both now and in the future.”
Back in 2019, the former first lady spoke at a round table for the Obama Foundation Summit about the importance of empowering the next generation.
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“You never know what little girl is going to benefit from that pebble you put down. All it takes is a pebble to change a girl’s life. Sometimes all it is is a message that they hear. It is that simple sometimes. Some girl somewhere sees you and goes, ‘I can do that.’ It isn’t magic,” per Glamour.
“It’s just that they saw it for themselves, they heard it. Somebody told them they could,” she adds.
“As a mother and a father bringing a life into world, you make that little life feel so special just by the conversations that you have around the table, the way you look at them, the way you address them, the way you give validation to their voice at a very young age.
I had that, and that took me so far and it gave me the fuel to combat all the truth and the doubt, the lies, the haters, the people who were afraid of me, the people who set their bars low for me. But I have that special thing in me that my parents gave me, and that was my little sword that I took with me everywhere.”
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