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Barack Obama tells young people they are key to changing the world Barack Obama urges young people to reject pessimism
(about 2 hours later)
Barack Obama has urged young people to ignore cynics telling them they cannot change the world as he opened a town hall-style meeting in London. Barack Obama has urged young people to reject pessimism and interact with people of different beliefs if they want to make changes in the world.
On the second full day of his visit, the US president addressed young people in Westminster and then took questions. On the final day of his last visit to the UK as president, Obama told 500 youth leaders at a town hall meeting in London: “I’m here to ask you to reject the notion there are forces we can’t control. As JFK said, our problems are manmade and can be solved by man.”
Obama praised the close relationship between the US and the UK, which he said had improved dramatically since the British “burned down my house” – a reference to British troops’ torching of the White House in the war of 1812-1814. “You’ve never had better tools to make a difference,” he told the A-level and UK-US exchange students at the Q&A session. “Reject pessimism, cynicism and know that progress is possible. Progress is not inevitable, it requires struggle, discipline and faith.”
Asked about the peace process in Northern Ireland, Obama said it was an example of what can be achieved when the US and Britain work together, and that he was pleased that “tribal mentalities” were being broken down. But Obama acknowledged the challenges faced by young people: “Not to say your generation has had it easy, in a time of breath-taking change, from 9/11, 7/7 ... and during an age of information and Twitter where there’s a steady stream of bad news.”
The president is also meeting the Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, following days of uncertainty. A meeting between a US president and the leader of the opposition would usually be routine during a trip to Britain stretching across three days, but Labour officials could not confirm such a meeting in recent days. The audience cheered as the president was introduced and went on to speak about his policies, from healthcare, to gay rights and education.
News of the meeting with Corbyn, who opposes British military intervention in Syria, came as Obama said the US and UK were ready to take action to stop Islamic State securing a stronghold in Libya from which to launch attacks on Europe or America. He urged the audience to interact with people of different political beliefs to themselves: “Seek out people who don’t agree with you, and it will also help you to compromise.”
During the question session, a young British-Pakistani Muslim woman, Maria Munir, 20, broke down in tears after coming out as non-binary - someone who does not regard themselves as exclusively masculine or feminine.
In response to the question about the rights of transgender people, Obama said: “You should feel encouraged social attitudes are changing, doesn’t mean it’s fast enough, but you should keep pushing and it’s in part due to the courageous acts of young people like yourself.”
When asked about his presidential legacy, Obama said he was proud of the healthcare reforms, which received huge cheers from the audience, and said of the US response to the 2008 financial crisis: “Saving the world from Great Depression – that was quite good.”
He also listed diplomatic deals with Iran and the response to the Ebola crisis as highlights during his presidency. “I’m proud; I think I’ve been true to myself during this process.”
But he added: “Don’t give up and succumb to cynics if after five years poverty hasn’t been eradicated ... It’s OK. Dr [Martin Luther] King says the arc of the [moral] universe is long but bends towards justice.”Questioned on the controversial Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, he said: “The answer to globalisation is not to pull up the drawbridge and shut off”, though it was crucial to pay attention to workers’ rights.
Before Obama arrived, Tanya Williams, a community engagement officer, told the Guardian: “I love Michelle, but I like Obama and it’s exciting to have the chance to hear someone who has changed so much and galvanised so many people who didn’t vote before.”
Oliver Sidorczuk, 26, an advocacy coordinator at the Bite the Ballot campaign group, said: “Everyone is extremely excited to listen to what he has to say. I’m going to ask him about electoral rights and try to ask him if he would join our campaign to ask David Cameron for automatic registration.”
Obama ended the session by taking a question from a young Sikh Londoner who asked about the issue of racial profiling at airports and being mistaken for a Muslim.
He said although there were people with “crazy ideology”, pluralism was important. “I visited a mosque a few months ago and said our greatest allies are American Muslims who are most integrated and economically well-off.”
Furqan Naeem, a campaigner from Manchester, said: “I recently visited the States through the US embassy on the community leaders programme and saw first-hand some really important work the president did in celebrating America’s diversity and bringing communities together.”
Obama left the stage to the Clash’s London Calling and people gathered around to take selfies with him.
Kenny Imafidon, managing director of the youth organisation ClearView Research, said afterwards: “It was a great opportunity and what will stick with me is when he said meeting with people who have different politics from you and having to make compromises. Also, the thing he said about being a good leader and finding great talent.”
Later on Saturday, and after days of uncertainty, Obama met the Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, who said he had an “excellent” discussion with the president. Corbyn said Obama congratulated him on being elected Labour leader.
Earlier, Obama visited the Globe theatre in Southwark to mark the 400th anniversary of the death of William Shakespeare.Earlier, Obama visited the Globe theatre in Southwark to mark the 400th anniversary of the death of William Shakespeare.
Speaking after talks with prime minister David Cameron at 10 Downing Street, Obama stressed there were no plans to send ground troops into Libya to support the new Government of National Accord. At the open-air venue, a reconstruction of the one where many of Shakespeare’s greatest works were performed, he watched a series of scenes from Hamlet to mark the 400th anniversary of the playwright’s death.
He said both the UK and US were determined to assist the administration of Fayez Serraj with technical help, training and advice to secure borders, drive out terrorists and rebuild Libya’s economy. Obama will end the day at a dinner with Cameron and the US ambassador, Matthew Barzun, at the envoy’s residence, before travelling to Germany on Sunday.
Obama said he and Cameron would not sit back and wait while Isis built up its base in the coastal city of Sirte into a launchpad for atrocities against the west.
“There are no plans for ground troops in Libya,” said Obama. “I don’t think it’s necessary. I don’t think it would be welcomed by this new government. It would send the wrong signal.
“This is a matter of ‘Can Libyans come together?’ What we can do is provide them with our expertise. What we can do is provide them with training. What we can do is provide them with a road-map for how they can get basic services to their citizens and build up legitimacy.
“But I do think that the one area where both David and I are heavily committed is that, as this progresses, we can’t wait if Isil is starting to get a foothold there.
“So, we are working – not just with the Libyan government but a lot of our international partners – to make sure that we are getting the intelligence that we need, and in some cases taking action to prevent Isil [Isis] from having another stronghold from which to launch attacks against Europe and the United States.”
Libya was top of the agenda at the talks in Downing Street and is expected to dominate a summit of the G5 group in Hanover on Monday, at which Cameron and Obama will discuss security threats with chancellor Angela Merkel, French president François Hollande and Italian PM Matteo Renzi.
Speaking alongside Obama at a press conference in the Foreign Office on Friday, Cameron said: “There is no doubt that the situation in Libya is immensely challenging. But we now finally have a government of national accord with whom we can work.”
Asked about his biggest achievement in the past eight years as president, Obama cited bringing in health insurance and dealing with the financial crash. “Saving the world economy from a great depression, that was pretty good.”
Though he did not refer directly to the implications of the UK leaving the EU, Obama said trade deals were generally difficult due to “parochial” interests and “factions” within countries.
Obama said racial tensions in America still needed to be dealt with and people could not be complacent just because an African-American was in the White House. “One of the dangers is that by electing a black president people say there must be no problem at all.”
Asked which grassroots movements had most impressed him, Obama cited the marriage equality campaign. “It’s probably been the fastest set of changes in terms of a social movement that I’ve seen,” he added.
The president said he started out backing civil partnerships, but gay friends helped persuade him that did not go far enough. “It’s not simply about legal rights, but about a sense of stigma. If you are calling it something different it means less in the eyes of society.”
Obama also praised the Black Lives Matter movement for raising awareness, but said you “can’t just keep on yelling” at people who want to sit down and talk.
He was urged to do more for the trans community by an audience member who had earlier said they were doing something “crazy”, before coming out to him as a non-binary person.
Obama responded: “That wasn’t that crazy – I thought you were going to ask to come up here and dance with me.”
The president praised the move to equality and said that controversial laws passed in North Carolina and Mississippi regarding trans people using public toilets were state issues. “It sounds to me like you are on the right track. We are taking a lot of serious steps to address these issues in the federal government.”