Businesswomen

"Not everyone’s gender identity matches the reproductive organs they were born with therefore you have been reclassified as a birthing person rather than a mother. Now are you ready to try chest feeding?"

"I don’t think it's kind to expect a woman to see a man as a woman."

"It's terrifying and I've had to navigate it all through nine months of ­pregnancy. I created a social network for women, myself included, where we can relax on the ­internet away from death threats and toxic male behaviour."

"[From a series of posts on X/Twitter] I'm being taken to federal court by a man who claims to be a woman because he wants to use a woman-only space I created. [...] There isn't a woman in the world who'd have to take me to court to use this woman only space. It takes a man for this case to exist."

"[A] small group of people have taken it upon themselves to declare that I am not who I know I am, and they have set about making my life miserable. This case, and the unlawful and discriminatory exclusion from the Giggle app, has stolen the last three years of my life."

"While there are a number of trans-only apps and straight women don't demand access to, say, the gay dating app Grindr, activists want Giggle removed from the Apple platform. They claim its software reads black women's faces as male. Grover says her users are women of all races from 88 countries and this is a vicious slur. Their true motivation is her female-only policy. It enrages a movement whose idea of activism is getting domestic violence refuges defunded for remaining single-sex; which can’t abide women having one damn thing."

"[Statement in court ] I wanted to create a safe, women-only space in the palm of your hand. [...] It is a legal fiction that Tickle is a woman. His birth certificate has been altered from male to female, but he is a biological man, and always will be. We are taking a stand for the safety of all women’s only spaces, but also for basic reality and truth, which the law should reflect."

"Unfortunately, we got the judgement we anticipated. The fight for women's rights continues."

"[Giggle was intended to be] a little corner of the Internet where women from all over the world could have a refuge away from men. It could be for serious reasons, very superficial reasons, or very practical reasons. It would be a place without harassment, 'mansplaining', 'dick pics', stalking, and aggression, and other male patterned online behaviour. A place to vent and get advice from other women and find out what was happening in the real world in a female-only environment."

"If Tickle wins, it will establish that males have a legal right, not just to the female sex category, but to all female spaces, including hospital wards, sports facilities, domestic violence refuges, rape crisis centres, and prisons."

"Sex is discriminatory, it always has been and always will be ... biological sex must prevail"

"My goal is not to strip anyone of their rights. My goal is to make everybody's rights clear. If we can get clarity on this hopefully it will stop the fighting between women and trans activists. Let's try and find positives to move forward."

"I’ve learnt to ask myself every day, Are you happy today? And if the answer is no I make a change."

"I feel most free when I am myself, stripped of all pretences, lounging naked on my bed, my boobies freely rolling to wherever they choose to land, my belly relaxed and soft, my thighs apart, my hands wherever they may choose to lie. With no one around me, I am my most free self."

"I spent years avoiding sex with guys because I didn’t want anyone to gossip about me. I wish I had realized sooner that no matter what I did guys would claim to have fucked me every which way under the sun."

"Many women lose all the privileges of a free woman when they get married and what they gain is nothing compared to what they lose."

"Today I feel like my best sex life is being lived in my imagination. I’m a lot more free in my mind than I am in my body. I dream and fantasise a lot but I don’t necessarily create the kind of experiences that would allow me to enjoy the feelings that I think about."

"I have learned over time that relationships require work. When you’re younger, you have a sense of love as being magical and so relationships happen in that particular space of magic, and it’s easy to feel that’s all one needs, but now I know that relationships require work, and constant work. The desire that is in the relationship also needs to be nurtured, and thought about, and reentered and reimagined."

"We achieve freedom when we let go of the weight of societal expectations, and when we find our people – those who love us, care for us, and hold us up when we start slipping."

"There's no such thing as friendship between men and women, if it's not the girl who's excited, then the guy's the guy who's excited, if someone says they both don't have feelings, there's bound to be someone who denies it, pure friends of the opposite sex are bullshit."

"Why child, I haven't had time for marriage. Men are a nuisance anyhow, now aren't they? They're just boys grown up."

"Looking for nuggets is like hunting for a whisper in a big wind. You have to have an occupation to fall back on while you’re searching for a strike."

"Every man I met up north was my protector, and any man I ever met, if he needed my help, got it, whether it was a hot meal, nursing, mothering or whatever else he needed. After all, we pass this way only once, and it's up to us to help our fellows when they need our help."

"When I saw something that needed doing, I did it."

"There were so many friends who laughed when they heard about the bamboo bike idea. Some people will definitely discourage you, but one thing I've realised in life is that you have to be focused. People never understand your journey because it is not theirs to understand."

"Draw inspiration and courage from you own dreams and passions and never slack on them."

"1994 was the most impactful year for me. The country was transitioning to democracy and because I had become such a fan of television, the psychology of the media became obvious to me even at that age."

"That’s when I thought, media is what I will do, but for good. If there are more of us doing good, with this platform and this tool, maybe by changing mindsets and getting people to see the similarities between themselves rather than the differences, then what kind of world could we build."

"You have to believe so strongly in what you are doing, to be so dedicated to it that you are willing to make the necessary sacrifices."

"I had to make a decision about whether I really wanted to be a lawyer or to pursue media."

"I work with leaders from all walks of life. The goal is to help them understand the power of personal narratives and organizational narratives too."

"The more I watched television, the more I understood that this thing actually shapes the world that we live in."

"I made a decision very early on that I was going to use my career in media and storytelling for good, so for me it is about the impact of the work that we have done."

"You know he is a very heavily built man, he came and told me how can I lose my title and you are the Minister for Lands ."

"He is not just a Kamba kingpin but a National leader -who has followings inside and outside Kenya. Therefore he deserves respect and admiration ."

"We believe that it is critical to invest in children’s minds, equipping them with life skills that will help them become successful in life."

"In Rwanda, it’s difficult to find particular children’s clothing, especially after the second-hand clothing ban. I wanted to be a part of it and help fellow women at the same time."

"Before venturing into politics, I was widely known as an accomplished businesswoman and a trade economist."

"We work with former street vendors, former housemaids and other vulnerable women in society to boost their livelihoods."

"I am an accomplished Business Woman, a Trade Economist and Good Governance Advocate. In the course of my sterling career spanning over two decades, I have garnered extensive experience in advising Governments at various levels on policy issues with special focus on Sustainable Economic Developments, amongst others."

"As we gather here today, we must remember that we have a responsibility to honor the legacy of those who lost their lives in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi and ensure that we never forget the atrocities that were committed. It is our obligation to work towards a future where all individuals are treated with dignity and respect, regardless of their background, religion, and especially ethnicity."

"I am confident that through the latest digital developments, our customers will transition into best-in-class financial services. By increasing provision of capital to businesses for quality investment, we will also continue to support Rwanda's ambition to foster a private sector driven economy."

"There are just so many complex issues that come in when women are vying for positions in politics – issues that usually suppress women all the time, but not the men."

"Even as we juggle both worlds, we have to stay true to ourselves – remain the strong and able woman that you are – and always remember we will never turn into a man. Stay true to yourself and achieve what you need to achieve, and get your job done."

"I think a new African woman is confident, assertive, brave, proud and ready to accomplish anything in any field. And the current generation, unlike in the past, have an added advantage of real-life inspirational examples of women who have achieved so much."

"I also believe that no matter at what level of your career, as a woman you have to have a good balance between your work life and your family life."

"I would say, yes. You know, when a woman gets into a position of power, even me as secretary general of COMESA, a lot of people assumed it was given to me because “it’s time a woman led COMESA”. But the facts are that I did not get into this position as a token."

"But I think it is important for all women who have succeeded and achieved in their own right, to find the time to mentor and create reality for this future generation."

"It is important to address systemic, structural and financial challenges that hinder young people from realizing their potential and take advantage of opportunities presented by COMESA and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)"

"But we should applaud ourselves where we have women in these positions because in some respects we have moved up, more so in the corporate world where there is more of a level playing field than in politics. This perhaps is because in politics the chances for women to make it higher up are harder."