Obama says women have the right to choose traditional roles, but shouldn’t be denied education

October 7th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Adorned in traditional garb and with intricate henna designs on their hands, women in the national capital and several parts of north India are celebrating the Karva Chauth festival Wednesday with a day long fast and prayers for their husband's long life. As per custom, women must observe a day long fast which is followed by evening rituals including sitting around the deity Gaura Mata and a small clay pitcher called karva and offering prayers.

September 10th, 2009 Italy wraps up women conferenceROME — Participants at a conference on violence against women vowed Thursday to put women's rights at the center of the international agenda, saying world peace and security depended on women's leadership in government and society. U.N. officials, government representatives and activists participating in the two-day meeting approved a final declaration that will be presented to a Group of Eight foreign ministers' meeting later this month in New York.

September 9th, 2009 Australia explores new roles for female soldiersADELAIDE, Australia — Australia may allow female soldiers to serve in front-line combat roles under proposed equal-opportunity guidelines that stoked debate Wednesday on whether women can meet the physical demands. Defence Personnel Minister Greg Combet told Parliament Tuesday that new physical employment standards were being developed for the Australian Defence Force that remove gender and age criteria and would hopefully help recruit more women to the military.

July 24th, 2009 Obama to address education reform on FridayWASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is turning his attention to education and people with disabilities. He'll deliver remarks on how schools can compete for more federal dollars Friday afternoon at the Education Department.

July 14th, 2009 Teachers urge Obama to collaborate to fix schoolsWASHINGTON — A teachers' union challenged the Obama administration Monday to live up to its promise of working with teachers and not against them. Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, said her union will post a "collaboration meter" on its Web site to judge whether reforms are happening with teacher involvement.

July 5th, 2009 Colin Powell attacks critics of SotomayorWASHINGTON — Colin Powell, one of the nation's most prominent African-Americans, is going after people who attacked Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor because of her stand in favor of affirmative action. Powell, who's from the same Bronx neighborhood in New York as Sotomayor, said she should face "a spirited set of hearings" in the Senate.

June 28th, 2009 MYSORE - Her day begins on an unusual note. Kalasamma, head of a village council in Karnataka, goes from door to door to ensure that all the children there are going to school.

June 4th, 2009 CAIRO - The United States President Barack Obama in his keynote speech on Thursday delved upon various issues that concerned America as well as the Arab world. bama said the first issue that we have to confront is violent extremism in all of its forms.

June 4th, 2009 Obama: equality should be a woman's choiceCAIRO — President Barack Obama says women should have the right to choose whether they want to be equal with men. He discussed women's rights in a speech about America's relationship with the Muslim world.

June 4th, 2009 Issues Obama outlined in speech to Muslim worldQuotes from President Barack Obama on issues he outlined Thursday in his speech to the Muslim world: VIOLENT EXTREMISM "In Ankara, (Turkey), I made clear that America is not and never will be at war with Islam. We will, however, relentlessly confront violent extremists who pose a grave threat to our security because we reject the same thing that people of all faiths reject, the killing of innocent men, women, and children.

June 3rd, 2009 Obama would exempt some from insurance mandateWASHINGTON — President Barack Obama said Wednesday that if Congress ends up requiring individuals to purchase health insurance, people who can't afford it and small businesses should be exempt. He also wants to slash an additional $200 billion to $300 billion from Medicare and Medicaid over 10 years — on top of $300 billion in cuts already proposed in his budget — to help pay for a sweeping health overhaul.

May 12th, 2009 WASHINGTON - It looks like U.S. president Barack Obama has en eye for tall women.

May 11th, 2009 Obama wants to see 5,000 failing schools closeWASHINGTON — President Barack Obama wants to see 5,000 failing schools close and reopen with new principals and teachers over the next five years. Education Secretary Arne Duncan says kids have only one shot at a good education.

May 8th, 2009 Budget cuts abstinence education programWASHINGTON — President Barack Obama wants to eliminate more than $100 million in spending on abstinence-only education, directing the money instead to teen pregnancy-reduction programs that don't take the no-sex approach. The proposal in Obama's 2010 budget plan released Thursday could run into opposition from conservatives.

April 24th, 2009 US targets population growth, urges women's powerWASHINGTON — The new U.S. ambassador for global women's issues pledged Thursday the Obama administration's "deep commitment" to a U.N.