Highlights from the United State of Women Summit

• Speakers included First Lady Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Gloria Steinem, Joe Biden, and President Barack Obama
• I sat in between a woman from the Center for Disease Control, and another woman from California who mentors teenage girls interested in the media
• The focus was on six key topics: economic empowerment, health and wellness, education, violence against women, entrepreneurship and innovation and leadership, and civic engagemen

I am still trying to grasp the fact that I attended the White House’s first ever United State of Women Summit in Washington, D.C., last week.

On June 14 (If I was not dreaming) I was among 5,000 activists, trailblazers, and changemakers at an event with an incredible speaker lineup that included a number of powerhouse women (and a few men) such as First Lady Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Gloria Steinem, Joe Biden, and President Barack Obama.

This event was more than a summit. It was a movement discussing how far we still need to go in order to establish gender equality around the world.

Thanks

I want to start out by thanking the individual behind my nomination. I would not have been a participant at this unforgettable event if it weren’t for my adviser, role model, and professor, Dr. Rekha Datta. Without her thoughtfulness on that day I would have been sitting at my desk at the Home News Tribune/Courier News instead of sitting in the audience at the White House Summit.

And, I would like to thank Monmouth University. Without its generosity I would not have been able to afford the monetary expenses involved with this experience.

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The Summit

The Summit was conducted at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Downtown D.C. A line quickly wrapped around the building shortly after the doors opened at 6:30 a.m. on Tuesday, June 14. I had never seen so many women before, thousands of women, all awaiting their entry into the United State of Women Summit.

After making it into the building, passing through an airport-like security check, shuffling through a very organized registration line, and grabbing a bagel from a well-stocked breakfast bar, myself and the other attendees were lead into the hall to select our seats.

I sat in between a woman from the Center for Disease Control, and another woman from California who mentors teenage girls interested in the media.

The Summit began around 9 a.m. with opening remarks from Valerie Jarret, senior adviser to the president and chair of the White House Council on Women and Girls, and Tina Tchen, chief of staff to the First Lady and executive director of the White House Council on Women and Girls.

The focus was on six key topics: economic empowerment, health and wellness, education, violence against women, entrepreneurship and innovation and leadership, and civic engagement. All of these subjects were discussed in a series of plenary presentations, and panel discussions.

The speakers list was never-ending. I heard riveting speeches from a number of actors, activists and politicians such as Nancy Pelosi, Kerry Washington, Amy Poehler, Matt McGorry, and Meryl Streep, just to name a few.

I cheered as Vice President Joe Biden passionately bellowed into the microphone and called for an end to rape culture. “We have to give our women and girls a voice, but we also have to assure them that they will be heard,” he said.

He made it clear that violence against women is an epidemic. Statistics show that one in five college women will be sexually assaulted during their four years as undergraduates.

A highlight of the day was an interview with Michelle Obama by Oprah. I wish you could have seen my face as I watched them walk out onto the stage together. There session was hilarious at times, and awe-inspiring at others.

“We can never be complacent - because we are not done.” said the First Lady as she looked out into the sea of activists cheering and clapping from all 50 states and around the world.

A few hours earlier I had witnessed President Obama take the stage.

In sixth grade I remember sitting in my middle school class, and watching the first African American president be sworn into office. I was 12 years old, and I did not understand why my teachers watched the ceremony with teary eyes.

Eight years later, seven months before the end of his final term I saw him off the screen and in person. I listened to him joke, share memories, laugh, and highlight the many ways that his administration has fought to better the lives of women and girls in America and around the world, and as he walked off the stage I wiped away a few of my own tears.

Mariska Hargitay spoke as well. Since I was a little girl I had only known her as Olivia Benson from "Law and Order." She discussed her work as the founder and president of the Joyful Heart Foundation, a national organization that uses education, advocacy, and knowledge to help sexual assault and abuse victims.

Later, a role model of mine, Amani Al-Khatahtbeh, the founder of Muslimgirl.com, moderated a session with Billie Jean King, the former top-ranked women’s tennis player, and Shonda Rhimes, the award winning television producer. I listened intently as they discussed the positive impact of civic engagement.

“When I was 12 I started to notice how the courts had white walls, the players shoes were white, and the players were white, and I wondered where everyone else was,” said King.

Moments earlier, scientists held another very important conversation. They discussed the need to encourage girls to study S.T.E.M and computer science.

In the early 1980's, the number of women with computer science degrees was 37 percent. That trend began to reverse in the 1980s. In 2013, 18 percent of bachelor’s degrees in computing were earned by women, and the numbers will continue to decrease unless we decide to take action.

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Conclusion

After 12 insightful hours, my greatest takeaway was that the story for women and girls continues to be written. We still have so far to go, but I am certain that we will get there eventually. I feel so blessed to have participated in the movement, because I left mentally energized, and fully committed towards continuing my journey as an advocate for gender equality.