Remarks by the First Lady at Diwali Celebration

Blue Room

4:07 P.M. EST

MRS. OBAMA:  Hello, everyone.  (Applause.)  Thank you so much.  Oh, my goodness.  Please rest.  Welcome!  Happy Diwali. 

AUDIENCE:  Happy Diwali.

MRS. OBAMA:  It is a pleasure and an honor to welcome you all here as we celebrate Diwali.  I want to start by thanking Lt. Colonel Chaudhary for his very kind introduction, but more importantly, for his outstanding service to our country.  I also want to recognize Kiran Ahuja, who is working very hard in this administration, for her leadership. 

And I want to give a special hello and thank you to Nakul, who is here.  I know he is in his jeans and t-shirt now, but -- (laughter) -- there's Nakul.  But we got to practice a little Bollywood this afternoon.  (Laughter.)  And we have many of the young people who were there with us today.  We -- (laughter) -- got moves, right?  (Applause.) 

But Nakul is here from one of my favorite shows on the planet – “So You Think You Can Dance.”  It is.  And, of course, as you all know, I think I can dance.  (Laughter.)  But not as good as they can dance.  But we had a wonderful time, and I think, as Nakul pointed out, it was the first time that we did Bollywood in the State Room here at the White House.  (Applause.)  So well done, to all my fellow dancers.

So thank you, Nakul.  Thank you for joining us.  We had a wonderful time, didn’t we, kids?  All the -- hands of the kids who were there.  We had fun!  (Applause.)  It was fun!  And they did a great job.  They did a wonderful job.

As you may know, we’ve celebrated this holiday here at the White House every year since Barack took office.  And there’s a reason why we've done that, and I mentioned it to the kids -- when we say that we want to make the White House the “people’s house,” we mean all people.  We mean that we want to honor and embrace all of the many cultures and faith traditions that make us who we are as Americans.  And Diwali is very much one of those traditions. 

As you know, this holiday is celebrated by members of some of the world’s oldest religions not just here in America but across the globe.  Diwali is a time for celebration.  So we learned today -- children, all smiles.  (Laughter.)  Smiles.  As Barack and I learned during our visit to India, it’s a time to come together with friends and family, often with dancing and good food. 

But Diwali is also a time for contemplation and reflection.  It’s a time for us to think about our obligations to our fellow human beings, particularly those who are less fortunate than we are.  And as we light the diya -- the lamp -- we recommit ourselves to the triumph of light over darkness, of good over evil. 

But as we gather here this Diwali, we remember that there is still evil in the world.  And I’m thinking today about what happened in Oak Creek, Wisconsin just last year when an act of unthinkable violence shook a community to its core.  But I am also thinking of how in the face of such evil, we also witnessed the power of goodness and forgiveness.

The families and community leaders I met when I visited Oak Creek just weeks after the tragedy, they showed us such courage and grace.  Instead of giving in to bitterness or despair, they honored those they lost through service.  They honored those they lost through educating others about their faith and standing up to prejudice in whatever form it takes.  I’m also thinking of all the people across America and around the world who held prayer vigils during that time and sent messages of love and support, and held the people of Oak Creek in their hearts. 

And finally, today, as we further reflect upon the power of courage and grace, I am also thinking of all of the women and men of every faith and background who are serving and enriching this country so greatly every single day -- folks like Lt. Colonel Chaudhary, and so many men and women here today who are serving our countries as well as their families, who serve right along with them and make that service possible.  I'm thinking about all of you today. 

I'm also thinking about folks like Nakul, and the members of Goldspot, who are leaders in the arts and bring us joy through music and dance.  (Applause.)  I'm also thinking of folks like Kiran, and so many others who are in leadership in this administration, who make our work so completely possible through their dedication. 

All of you, all of you here, all of you around the world, you all are the bright shining lights for this country and such extraordinary role models for all of the young people who are here with us today.  And I want our young people, as you sit in this room, to think about all these wonderful role models are doing and how it is our expectation that you too live up to that, right, with smiles on your faces.  (Laughter.) 

And I am so proud and so honored to be celebrating this beautiful holiday at the White House with all of you.  I want to thank you for everything that you do for our communities and for this country.  And I wish you all and all your loved ones a Happy Diwali and Saal Mubarak.  (Applause.)

And with that, we will now light the White House Diya.

END
4:41 P.M. EST

Remarks by the First Lady at Sesame Workshop Licensing & Let's Move! Announcement

State Dining Room

2:44 P.M. EDT

MRS. OBAMA:  Thank you, everyone.  (Applause.)  Good afternoon.  Well, welcome to the White House.  I'm thrilled to have you all here today.

As many of you know, last month, we held the first ever White House Convening on food marketing for children.  And I stood in this exact room in this exact same spot with representatives from America’s leading companies and organizations.  And I issued a simple challenge:  I challenged those leaders to market food more responsibly to our children.  I challenged them to use creative, innovative marketing strategies to get our kids excited about healthy foods.   

And today, just six weeks later, it is no surprise that Sesame Workshop was the first organization to answer this call.  Because that, more than anything else, is Sesame Workshop’s mission:  To help our kids learn and grow and fulfill every last bit of their potential.

And that’s why, nearly a decade ago, Sesame Workshop created their Healthy Habits for Life initiative to teach kids about healthy eating and exercise.  And that is why, today, they’re taking the unprecedented step of letting America’s produce companies use Sesame Street Muppet characters to get kids excited about eating fruits and vegetables, and they’re doing this free of charge.  Yes!  (Laughter and applause.)  Free!  Yes, Mel, free.  (Applause.)  Right here in the pocketbook.  Like that.  (Laughter.)

This is a huge deal, and I want to take a moment to express my appreciation to Mel Ming and everyone from Sesame Workshop for everything they are doing for our children.  You guys are phenomenal, and it is always a pleasure and an honor to work with you.

I also want to thank Larry at PHA for their work on this initiative and so many other important initiatives.  You all have been phenomenal, and I am so proud and so grateful.

And of course, I want to give a big thank you to Jan and to Bryan Silberman and the Produce Marketing Association.  Their members are already hard at work preparing to deploy the Sesame Street Muppet characters on behalf of fruits and vegetables.  You guys are ready to roll, that's good.  (Laughter.)  And these new efforts are so incredibly important, because right now, when it comes to marketing food to our kids, as you all know, the deck is stacked against healthy foods like fruits and vegetables. 

The average child watches thousands of food advertisements each year, and 86 percent of these ads are for products loaded with sugar, fat or salt.  By contrast, our kids see an average of just one ad -- just one ad -- a week for healthy products like water and fruits and vegetables.  Just one.  And the ads that our kids are seeing are highly effective, particularly those that feature the TV and movie characters that our children have come to love and adore. 

And you don’t have to take my word for it.  The research bares it out.  In one study, researchers gave children a choice between eating an apple, a cookie or both.  Surprisingly, the vast majority of kids went for the cookies.  I might do the same.  (Laughter.)  But when the researchers put Elmo stickers on the apples and let the kids choose again, nearly double the number of kids went for an apple.  That’s right, just that little Elmo sticker, the power of Elmo, was enough to get kids excited about eating a healthy snack. 

So just imagine what will happen when we take our kids to the grocery store and they see the Sesame Street Muppets lining all over the produce aisle.  Just imagine.  Imagine.  (Laughter.)  Mel's eyes are like, oh, it's going to be good.  (Laughter.)  Just imagine what it's going to be like, moms and dads, when our kids are begging us to buy them fruits and vegetables instead of cookies, candy and chips.  It can happen.

That’s what this new collaboration between Sesame Workshop and the Produce Marketing Association is all about.  It’s about showing our kids that healthy food can be fun and that fruits and vegetables just don't make us feel good, but they also taste good.  So this is a very important step forward.

But while Sesame Workshop and PMA might be the first to answer our call, there is plenty of work left to be done, and there are plenty of different ways to show leadership on this issue.  So I am looking forward to celebrating more companies and more organizations as they step up on behalf of our children.  

And today, we have a very special surprise.  I am thrilled to be joined by two furry friends from Sesame Street -- (laughter) -- who will be playing such an important role in this new effort.  Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you Elmo and Rosita!  (Applause.) 

ROSITA:  Hola!

ELMO:  Hello, Hello Mrs. Obama!  (Laughter.)

MRS. OBAMA:  It's great to see you.  Elmo, I love the tie.  You dressed up for our press conference.

ROSITA:  And I wore my pearls, my mom's pearls.

MRS. OBAMA:  Oh, my God, they're beautiful.

ELMO:  Can Elmo tell you a secret?

MRS. OBAMA:  Yes, please.

ELMO:  It's a clip-on. 

MRS. OBAMA:  It's a -- oh, it's a clip-on.

ELMO:  It's a clip-on.

MRS. OBAMA:  So, how do you guys feel about getting kids pumped up and excited about eating healthy foods?

ELMO:  Oh, well, it’s wonderful.  Elmo loves healthy foods.  Yes, Elmo thinks that fruits and vegetables are delicious.

ROSITA:  Yes, sí, sí, sí, me, too.  And you know what?  They help us grow healthy and strong. Check out these muscles.

MRS. OBAMA:  Let me see your muscle.  Let me see it.

ELMO:  Oh, that's a giant muscle, Rosita.  (Laughter.)

MRS. OBAMA:  It’s mighty, mighty.  Oh, yes.  Oh, Elmo, oh, your muscle, too, is so powerful.

ROSITA:  Let me see your muscle.  Oh.  (Laughter.)  Wow, strong. 

ELMO:  You know, Elmo eats lots of fruits and vegetables every day, Mrs. Obama. 

MRS. OBAMA:  That's very good.

ROSITA:  Oh, that's wonderful, Elmo, because you know what?

ELMO:  What?

ROSITA:  Fruits and vegetables are anytime foods. 

MRS. OBAMA:  They are.

ROSITA:  You know what that means?

ELMO:  What?

ROSITA:  They're so good for you that you can eat them every single day.  (Laughter.)

MRS. OBAMA:  All the time.  All the time.

ELMO:  You know what Elmo loves about them, too?

MRS. OBAMA:  What?

ELMO:  They're very colorful.

MRS. OBAMA:  They are pretty.

ELMO:  Lots of different colors. 

MRS. OBAMA:  Yes.

ROSITA:  And the more colors you eat, the better.  Yes.

MRS. OBAMA:  Lots of colors are good.

ELMO:  It’s like a rainbow of food.

MRS. OBAMA:  A rainbow of food.

ROSITA:  Beautiful rainbow.

ELMO:  Can Mrs. Obama say it?  A rainbow of food.

MRS. OBAMA:  A rainbow of food.  (Laughter.)  It’s beautiful.

ELMO:  And even if some of the foods are foods that Elmo’s never tried before, Elmo likes to try new foods because they're so colorful.

MRS. OBAMA:  That's very good.  I’m so proud of you.

ROSITA:  Yo también.  Me, too. 

MRS. OBAMA:  Sí, sí. 

ELMO:  Yes, yes --

MRS. OBAMA:  Excellent.

ELMO:  And, Mrs. Obama?

MRS. OBAMA:  Yes.

ELMO:  What are some of your favorite foods?

ROSITA:  Yes, tell us.

MRS. OBAMA:  Oh, I love sweet potatoes.  I love broccoli.  And you know what?  I love them when they're put on a pizza.  I love veggie pizza.

ELMO:  Now, wait a minute, wait a minute.

MRS. OBAMA:  What?

ELMO:  We’re talking about healthy foods here, and you’re going to put cheese on them?

ROSITA:  But it’s good.  (Laughter.)

MRS. OBAMA:  Is that funny, Elmo? 

ELMO:  That's hilarious. 

MRS. OBAMA:  Veggie pizza is very healthy for you.

ROSITA:  Do you know how you say broccoli in Spanish?

ELMO:  How?

MRS. OBAMA:  How?

ROSITA:  Broccoli.  (Laughter.)

MRS. OBAMA:  Broccoli.  That's excellent.  Well, these are all good foods, and we’re going to help kids learn to love all the fruits and vegetables.  In fact, we actually have many of these fruits and vegetables growing in our White House Kitchen Garden.  Yes.

ELMO:  Oh.

ROSITA:  Really?

MRS. OBAMA:  And guess what?

ELMO:  What?

MRS. OBAMA:  We’ve got a bunch of kids here today.  They are out there at the garden, and they're going to help us harvest our fruits and vegetables for the fall. 

ELMO:  Oh, really, really?

MRS. OBAMA:  Yes, yes.

ELMO:  Wow.

MRS. OBAMA:  And then we’re going to cook a tasty meal for us all to share after we harvest the vegetables.

ELMO:  Oh, that's very exciting.

ROSITA:  Oh, oh, this is good.  Yes, yes!

MRS. OBAMA:  It’s going to be good.  It’s going to be good.  (Laughter.)  So here’s the thing -- do you guys want to help?

ROSITA:  Sí.  Pero, claro que sí.

MRS. OBAMA:  Do you want to come and help us harvest, and then eat with the kids?

ELMO:  That sounds wonderful.

MRS. OBAMA:  All right, well then, let’s get it done.

ROSITA:  Let’s get it done.

MRS. OBAMA:  Let’s Move.  Let’s Move.  Let’s Move. Let’s Move.  Let’s Move.  (Applause.)  All right, I’ll see you guys.  I’ll see you guys.  Bye.  (Applause.)

I have to go change to go out to the garden.  I've got to beat Elmo and Rosita.  But thank you all for the work that you're doing.  As you can see, we've got some good ambassadors right here.  I think this is going to help.

So, once again, thank you all, and we will see you soon.  At the next press conference, we're announcing the next initiative, correct?  All right, you all.  Take care.  (Applause.)  

END
2:54 P.M. EDT