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Why in the world is Melania Trump leading a UN security council meeting? | Arwa Mahdawi

“We ended DEI in America,” Donald Trump boasted during his State of the Union (SOTU) address on Tuesday.

Unlike many things the president said in his excruciatingly long SOTU speech, this was actually half true. The Trump administration’s “war on woke” has pushed a lot of large companies and institutes to retreat from the diversity, equity and inclusion policies they used to pretend to be proud of.

But while DEI may be dead, WTF hiring is very much alive. Being Wealthy, Trumpy, and/or Fox News-famous seem to be the only qualifications you need for success in Trump’s USA. See, for example, the entire Trump administration: a horrifying hodgepodge of unqualified sycophants. See also, hot off the press, Melania Trump’s new gig at the United Nations. It’s been announced that the first lady will lead a session of the United Nations security council on Monday titled Children, Technology, and Education in Conflict.

It can’t be stressed enough that this is highly unusual. As the White House noted in a statement: “Mrs Trump’s leadership will mark the first time a sitting US first lady presides over the security council.” Back in precedented times, you see, you generally needed a qualification or two to lead the security council. Now, however, we’re squarely in the WTF economy: Melania is a Trump, ergo automatically qualified to do anything her little heart desires.

What I want to know is why exactly Melania’s heart desires this. It’s true that the first lady likes a project and has kept herself very busy with her meme coins and coffee table books and film ventures. She has also made moves to position herself as a leading voice in the area of responsible technology for children and children in conflict. But, despite her pet projects, she’s kept a low profile as first lady and hasn’t seemed particularly enthused about public service or multilateralism.

It is my working hypothesis that there are only two reasons a Trump ever does anything: money or malice. I’m not sure holding the gavel at Monday’s security council session is particularly lucrative, so file this one under “malice”. Foisting Melania on the security council as the US assumes the body’s rotating monthly presidency sends a clear message to the world about just how seriously the Trump administration takes the UN. It feels like an attempt to undermine the credibility of the UN and multilateralism more broadly.

Trump certainly hasn’t tried to hide his contempt for independent intergovernmental institutions. In his first term as president, he withdrew from the World Health Organization (WHO). This was reversed by Joe Biden and then that reversal was overturned by Trump last year: the US formally left the WHO at the end of last month. In January, the president also signed an executive order withdrawing the US from 66 international organizations, agencies and commissions, including the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. Trump justified this by saying the organizations’ interests run “contrary” to US interests. In other words, they commit the cardinal sin of not doing everything he says.

“The symbolism is unequivocal,” Daniel Forti, head of UN affairs at the International Crisis Group, told NPR about this retreat from the UN system. “It’s that the US really wants to dictate its own terms to the rest of the multilateral system and wants to work with the UN in a way where it really sets the agenda.”

The US is certainly setting the agenda in Gaza, with Trump’s so-called Board of Peace. The US owes more than $4bn in UN arrears; it has only paid $160m of this but, according to a recent announcement by Trump, $10bn will be transferred from the US government to the “Board of Peace”, an international body chaired by the president and full of his lackeys and family – including son-in-law Jared Kushner, who is on the founding executive board. Rather than bring any sort of relief to Gaza, the board seems like a vehicle for rampant profiteering. And a very exciting personal opportunity for Kushner, who has waxed lyrical about Gaza’s valuable waterfront property.

Trump has also made it clear that he thinks the board is “going to go far beyond Gaza”. While he has said “we’re working in conjunction with the United Nations,” a number of diplomats worry it will morph into an alternative forum to the UN: one which is quite explicitly controlled by the US.

All of which must be very exciting for our first lady, who is clearly keen to try her hand at international diplomacy. Perhaps, after her valuable work experience stint at the United Nations on Monday, Melania will also find herself a nice little role on the Board of Peace. And maybe Ivanka Trump, who the president once thought about installing as the head of the World Bank, will also return to public life. Whatever happens, I think we can all agree that we’re terribly lucky to have such a talented ruling family. Fifa, I hope you’re paying attention; time to give Melania her own peace prize, don’t you think?

EU opens up funding to guarantee abortion rights across bloc

Women in EU member states with near-total abortion bans, such as Poland, will be given help to access legal and safe abortions elsewhere, it was announced on Thursday. This is being hailed as a “victory for women” and was the result of the My Voice, My Choice citizens’ initiative. Nice to see democracy working properly for a change!

Tennessee Republicans try to introduce the death penalty for abortions

A number of Republican state lawmakers, including representative Monty Fritts, who is also running for governor, recently introduced an amendment to the criminal code which would classify abortion as “homicide of an unborn child”, punishable by life imprisonment or death by lethal injection. It looks like this bill will stall indefinitely, but the fact that it was even introduced shows just how far right the Overton window has shifted.

Lindsey Graham accused of sexism towards Danish prime minister

According to the Danish newspaper Berlingske, via the Daily Beast, the South Carolina senator called Mette Frederiksen “little lady” as he looked her “straight in the eye” and “sneered” during an exchange.

The side part is back

Big news for geriatric millennials like me.

The BBC seems to think ‘free Palestine’ is more offensive than the N-word

Very disturbing to see what BBC decided to edit out of the British Academy Film Awards and what they decided to keep in.

Two women arrested in Uganda for allegedly kissing in public

It’s not clear if the women will be formally charged, but if they are they could face a life sentence. Back in 2023, Uganda passed one of the harshest anti-LGBTQ+ laws in the world. It includes life imprisonment for same-sex relationships and the death penalty for “aggravated homosexuality”.

Palestinian journalists raped in Israeli prisons, report alleges

Almost 60 Palestinian journalists detained in Israeli prisons have been beaten, starved and subjected to sexual violence, including rape, a report by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) alleges. Another CPJ report, released on Wednesday, found Israel is responsible for two-thirds of a record 129 press killings in 2025 and to blame for 81% of “intentionally targeted” journalist killings.

Cardiovascular disease rising among women

Nearly six in the 10 women in the US will have some sort of cardiovascular diseases by 2050, according to projections outlined in a new statement from the American Heart Association. In more positive news, rates of high cholesterol are expected to decline among nearly all groups of women.

The week in pawtriarchy

Moooove over, Moo Deng, the world has a new favourite celebrity zoo animal. Punch, a Japanese macaque, has shot to international prominence after being abandoned by his mother and growing attached to a stuffed orangutan toy from Ikea. It would seem that little Punch is now has a lot of (pri)mates and is generally thriving. So is Ikea, which is now selling out of its Djungelskog orangutan soft toy. Opportunistic resellers are also jacking up the stuffed toy’s price and putting it on eBay. Capitalism really is bananas.