Michelle Obama started the ‘Let Girls Learn’ education initiative to help facilitate educational opportunities for girls in developing countries in 2015.
Donald Trump and his administration is now ending it.
via Huffington Post:
Michelle Obama launched “Let Girls Learn” in 2015 “to change the perception of the value of girls at the individual, community and institutional levels; foster an enabling environment for adolescent girls’ education; and engage and equip girls to make life decisions and important contributions to society,” the program website states.
Run primarily by the Peace Corps and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), “Let Girls Learn” drew on funding from the private and public sector to promote girls’ education in developing countries around the world. In its two years of existence, the program raised over $1 billion to help girls in over 50 countries.
CNN reported on Monday that it obtained an email which Peace Corps acting director Sheila Crowley sent this week to inform employees that “Let Girls Learn” would be ending, though some elements of the program will continue.
“Moving forward, we will not continue to use the ‘Let Girls Learn’ brand or maintain a stand-alone program,” read the email.
A Peace Corps spokesperson told CNN that the agency will continue to prioritize programming for girls. “Girls’ education and empowerment has been a hallmark of our work over the past 56 years, and we look forward to continuing those efforts with our interagency partners,” the spokesperson said. “We remain dedicated to the passionate work of our volunteers and staff to empower and educate girls in their communities.”
Still, many Twitter users were outraged at the news that “Let Girls Learn” would be no more. Several directed their comments toward the first daughter and assistant to the president, Ivanka Trump, who has maintained throughout her father’s campaign and presidency that he supports women’s empowerment wholeheartedly.
Obama’s former chief of staff, Tina Tchen, told CNN she believes “Let Girls Learn” generated the immense support and name-recognition needed to make a real difference.
“I think it’s unfortunate to not continue with the branded campaign,” she said. “We think that this is an issue that has bipartisan support, it’s really not a Republican or Democratic issue.”
Tchen also noted that President Barack Obama’s administration not only continued but expanded President George W. Bush’s global development program, The President’s Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).
The Obama administration also expanded the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI), which President Bush launched in 2005 to combat malaria in some of the hardest hit parts of the world. First Lady Laura Bush was an active supporter of PMI and PEPFAR and even made several solo trips to promote the global health initiatives.
We’re just going to leave this here.
