--- title: Mother's Day Address by Michelle Obama on Kidnapped Nigerian Girls description: First Lady says U.S. is doing "everything possible" to free kidnapped girls. canonical: https://time.com/94835/michelle-obama-mothers-day-address-nigerian-schoolgirls/ author: Zeke Miller article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-05-10T10:00:59.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-01T08:52:44.600Z article:section: Politics og:title: Mother's Day Address by Michelle Obama on Kidnapped Nigerian Girls og:description: First Lady says U.S. is doing "everything possible" to free kidnapped girls. og:url: https://time.com/94835/michelle-obama-mothers-day-address-nigerian-schoolgirls/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0bcaa14dd66de19d/69868eca810bbb14bac9182c/screen-shot-2014-05-10-at-8-15-06-am.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2424 og:image:height: 1364 og:image:alt: Screen Shot 2014-05-10 at 8.15.06 AM og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Mother's Day Address by Michelle Obama on Kidnapped Nigerian Girls twitter:description: First Lady says U.S. is doing "everything possible" to free kidnapped girls. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0bcaa14dd66de19d/69868eca810bbb14bac9182c/screen-shot-2014-05-10-at-8-15-06-am.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Michelle Obama on Nigerian Schoolgirls: 'Barack and I See Our Own Daughters' > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=ca8ee6e3-d29e-4cb2-89ca-7773dbc7ac98&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Weekly Address: The First Lady Marks Mother's Day and Speaks Out on the Tragic Kidnapping in Nigeria [Watch (HLS stream): Weekly Address: The First Lady Marks Mother's Day and Speaks Out on the Tragic Kidnapping in Nigeria](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/vsK9t8e2.m3u8) (5:24)  _Published 2014-05-10. Weekly Address- The First Lady Marks Mother's Day and Speaks Out on the Tragic Kidnapping in Nigeria_ by [Zeke Miller](https://time.com/author/zeke-j-miller/) ## Zeke Miller May 10, 2014 10:00 AM UTC by [Zeke Miller](https://time.com/author/zeke-j-miller/) ## Zeke Miller May 10, 2014 10:00 AM UTC First Lady Michelle Obama spoke out against the kidnapping of more than 200 Nigerian schoolgirls last month in the White House’s weekly address marking Mother’s Day. Delivering the address for the first time without [President Barack Obama](http://motto.time.com/4199637/barack-obama-daughters/), the first lady said she and her husband are “outraged and heartbroken” by the kidnappings. “In these girls, Barack and I see our own daughters,” she said. “We see their hopes, their dreams – and we can only imagine the anguish their parents are feeling right now.” “I want you to know that Barack has directed our government to do everything possible to support the Nigerian government’s efforts to find these girls and bring them home,” she said, as a team of military and intelligence advisors deployed by the administration to assist the Nigerian government began arriving in Abuja. “This unconscionable act was committed by a terrorist group determined to keep these girls from getting an education—grown men attempting to snuff out the aspirations of young girls,” she said. Obama tied the kidnappings to a broader struggle to give girls access to the education they deserve, highlighting the plight of 65 million girls who are not attending school across the globe. “We know that girls who are educated make higher wages, lead healthier lives and have healthier families,” the first lady said. “And when more girls attend secondary school, that boosts their country’s entire economy. So education is truly a girl’s best chance for a bright future, not just for herself, but for her family and her nation.” “I hope that any young people in America who take school for granted—any young people who are slacking off or thinking of dropping out—I hope they will learn the story of these girls and recommit themselves to their education,” she added. ## Transcript Hello everyone, I'm Michelle Obama, and on this Mother's Day weekend, I wanna take a moment to honor all of the mothers out there and wish you, a happy Mother's Day. I also wanna speak to you, about an issue of great significance to me as First Lady and more importantly, as the mother of two young daughters. Like millions of people across the globe, my husband and I are, outraged and heartbroken. Over the kidnapping of more than 200 Nigerian girls from their, school dormitory, in the middle of the night. This unconscionable act, was committed by a terrorist group, determined to keep these girls from getting an education. Grown men, attempting to snuff out the aspirations of young girls. And I want you to know that, Barack has directed our government, to do everything possible, to support the Nigerian government's efforts to find these girls and bring them home. In these girls, Barack and I see our own daughters. We see their hopes and their dreams. And we can, only imagine the anguish their parents are feeling right now. Many of them may I have been hesitant to send their daughters off to school fearing, that harm might come their way, but they took that risk, because they believed in their daughters promise, and wanted to give them every opportunity to succeed. The girls themselves also, knew full well the dangers they might encounter. Their school had recently been closed due to terrorist threats. But these girls still insisted on returning to take their exams. They were so determined to, move to the next level of their education, so determined to one day build careers of their own and make their families and communities proud. And what happened in Nigeria was not an isolated incident. It is a story we see everyday. As girls around the world risk their lives to pursue their ambitions. It's the story of girls like Malala Yousafzai from Pakistan. Malala spoke out for girl's education in her community. And, as a result, she was shot in the head by a Taliban gunman, while on a school bus with her classmates. But fortunately, Malala survived. And when I met her last year I could feel her passion and determination, as she told me that girls education, is still her life's mission. As Malala said in her address to the United Nations. She said the terrorists thought, that they would change our aims, and stop our ambitions. But nothing changed in my life except this. Weakness, fear and hopelessness died. Strength, power and courage, was born. The courage and hope. Embodied by Malala and girls like her around the world should serve as a call to action, because right now, more than 65 million girls worldwide, are not in school. Yet, we know that girls who were educated, make higher wages. Lead healthier lives and have healthier families. And when more, girls attend secondary school, that boosts their countries' entire economy. So, education is truly a girl's best chance, for a bright future and not just for herself. But for her family and her nation. And that's true, right here in the US as well. So, I hope this story, of these Nigerian girls will serve, as an inspiration for every girl, and boy in this country. I hope that, any young people in America who, take school for granted. Any young people who are slacking off or thinking about dropping out, I hope, they will learn the story of these girls, and recommit themselves to their education. These girls embody the best hope, for the future of our world. And we are committed to standing up for them, not just in times of tragedy, or crisis, but for the long haul. We are committed, to giving them the opportunities they deserve to fulfill every, last bit of their God- given potential. So, today. Let us all pray for their safe return, let us hold their families in our hearts, during this very difficult time. And let us show, just a fraction, of their courage, in fighting to give every girl on this planet, the education that is her birthright. 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