© 2024 WSHU
NPR News & Classical Music
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
We received reports that some iPhone users with the latest version of iOS (v17.4) cannot play audio via the Grove Persistent Player.
While we work to fix the issue, we recommend downloading the WSHU app.

U.N. Ambassador Samantha Power Speaks Of "Enduring Inequalities" At Yale Class Day

United States Mission to the United Nations

This weekend, United States Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power spoke at Yale’s Class Day. Power was elected by students to talk as part of the University’s ongoing commencement ceremonies. 

In her speech, she said that while Yale and the United States have improved equality for women, there is still work to be done.

Power said that, much like the United States, Yale has never had a woman president, except for the scholar Hannah Gray, who held the role temporarily for a year when her predecessor left suddenly. Power said in the last 24 years, only four women before her have spoken at Yale on Class Day. She is now the fifth in that time period, “which makes sense in a way because it’s not like there are any amazing women out there who attended Yale. It’s not like the first ever Latina Supreme Court justice went to Yale. Or the first woman to chair the Federal Reserve so I get it, amazing Yale women are hard to find,” Power said, to great applause.

When asked about the gender issues Power brought up, a spokesperson for Yale said the ambassador was an “amazing speaker.”

Power also spoke about other "enduring inequalities"and told students to take risks, if they wanted to make lasting change.

Kathie is a former editor at WSHU.