GiGi Farley says she knows what her future holds.
GiGi, the 10-year-old daughter of state Rep. Steve Farley, won’t
need to take career-aptitude tests when she gets older. Her career
choice is already crystal clear: president of the United States.
While it sounds endearing that a young girl wants to be president,
GiGi—a self-proclaimed “Earth-saving, animal-loving kind
person”—is serious and knowledgeable about her choice.
She’s already in the planning stages: She watches the Today show each weekday morning—it’s her favorite program—so that
she “gets to know what is going on with the economy and current
issues.” She has an adviser (Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords),
campaign manager and brochure designer. In November 2006, she
approached then-Gov. Janet Napolitano at a polling place and asked if
she would be her chief fundraiser. Napolitano’s response: “Yes, if I
live long enough.”
GiGi also knows her steps to the White House: “First, I’ll run for
city council. Then I’ll run for state representative. Then I’ll try to
run for governor. And then U.S. senator and then president.” GiGi is
eligible to run for president in 2036.
Her desire is to “help America become a better place.” Issues high
on her priority list are health care and global warming.
GiGi’s interest in becoming president started when she was 7. Her
interest in current affairs was already firmly established: During a
trip to the movies, she chose to see An Inconvenient
Truth instead of Cars. She also encouraged her father to
purchase an eco-friendly Toyota Prius.
Interest and planning aside, GiGi shows remarkable leadership and
confidence for her age. She recalls an incident at school that happened
a few years ago. “I was on the playground looking for someone to play
with. This boy pinned me up against the fence. There were some others
girls there, and they told me they were going to keep me there ‘until I
die.’ I was strong and broke free. I went and told the monitor, and he
said to stay away from them. I said, ‘Other girls are being hurt over
there.’ He didn’t do anything.”
GiGi told her mother, who talked to the teacher and then the
counselor. The boy was asked to apologize to GiGi, but he later asked
her why it was such a big deal. Her astute reply was that what may be a
small deal to some people may be a big deal to others.
GiGi feels it’s important to stand up for what’s right and points to
her parents and Hillary Clinton as role models. She’s also big on going
after her dreams and encourages others to do so. “No matter if you’re
rich, or if you’re poor, if you’re tall or short, always go out and get
it.”
Her father has enjoyed watching GiGi’s interest in politics. “I’ve
just been amazed at how she seems to be fearless in going up in front
of crowds, particularly in front of these political events. It doesn’t
matter whether there are other adults asking very sophisticated
questions. She comes up with a very sophisticated question that she
really wants to know the answer to, and it’s totally relevant,” says
Farley.
While 2036 is a while down the road, we can read what GiGi has to
say about becoming president in the recently released She’s Out
There: Essays by 35 Young Women Who Aspire to Lead the Nation,
edited by Amy Sewell and Heather L. Ogilvie. GiGi’s essay was selected
out of hundreds from around the country. She will be attending a
book-signing at 2 p.m., Saturday, June 13, at Borders, 5870 E. Broadway
Blvd.
GiGi is excited to attend the book-signing and hopes to be on
television, too. She says she’s very open to the press and conducted
herself like an old pro during our interview.
But most telling about GiGi is a casual comment she made to me when
recalling the school-bully incident: “I wasn’t worrying about what
would happen to me; I was worried about what would happen to the other
girls.” Knowledgeable, confident and concerned for the welfare
of others? It sounds like GiGi has the right stuff to make a positive
difference.
This article appears in May 21-27, 2009.
With all due respect, in my opinion, this article is mundane and certainly does not rise to the level of meriting two-thirds of a page in Tucson Weekly.
There are, I’m sure, plenty of ten-year olds who aspire to all sorts of occupations, including President of the United States. A child choosing to view a documentary over some other sort of movie (I’m not familiar with “Cars,”) and watching The Today Show (which is more fluff than news,) is hardly noteworthy, nor does it reflect one’s unique aspirations to enter politics. Again, please, recall we are talking about a ten-year old child.
Regarding her unfortunate incident on a school playground several years ago, I hardly think it insightful that she said she was worried about the other girls on the playground instead of herself. I think it’s probable that her concern for others was borne out of what had happened to her personally. This is not unique behavior either in adults or children.
I commend GiGi for writing an essay which was selected as one of thirty-five (if I understand correctly) out of hundreds (how many–two-hundred, nine-hundred, or somewhere in-between?) Still, I can’t quite grasp why you seem to suggest this accomplishment (and the aforementioned lesser events) have her practically running for the presidency in 2036.
“Knowledgeable, confident, and concerned for the welfare of others” are attributes to which we should all aspire and many of us do. Maybe I’m missing the point here. Was GiGi not the daughter of Rep. Steve Farley, would you have written it? There are more pressing and germane issues in Tucson that could have filled that space.