Earlier this month, President Obama signed an Executive Order, creating the White House Council on Women and Girls. The Council was created ‘to provide a coordinated federal response to the challenges confronted by women and girls, and to ensure that all Cabinet and Cabinet-level agencies consider how their policies and programs impact women and families, ‘according to the press release from the Office of the Press Secretary of the White House.
What’s great about the creation of this Council, for one, is that it’s long overdue. It ‘will ensure that agencies across the federal government, not just a few offices, take into account the particular needs and concerns of women and girls.’ The Council’s first year will start off by focusing on issues that have been needing to be addressed. For example, ‘improving women’s economic security/status, developing polices that establish a balance between work and family, working hand-in-hand with the Vice President, among other government officials, to find new ways to prevent violence against women (home and abroad,) and finally, helping to build healthy families and improve women’s heath care.’
While it will be a White House Council on Women and Girls, President Obama said, ‘I want to be clear that issues like equal pay, family leave, child care and others are not just women’s issues, they are family issues and economic issues.’ Hmmm…I have a strong feeling the First Lady may have had some influence in this decision. What do you think? It’s unfortunate that countries like Afghanistan (read the blog below) are the antithesis of what America is (finally!) striving to do and be. –Regina
vid clip: youtube.com/more info: whitehouse.gov
