President Joe Biden has appointed Karine Jean-Pierre as the new assistant to the President and Secretary of the White House. She will succeed incumbent press secretary Jen Psaki, who leaves on May 13.
Jean-Pierre will be the first black and openly gay woman to take on the role.
“Karine not only brings the experience, talent and integrity needed for this difficult job, but she will continue to lead the way in communicating the work of the Biden-Harris administration on behalf of the American people,”
Biden said in a statement.
Jean-Pierre thanked the Biden administration for the “honor and privilege” of her next role and committed herself to representing the country as best she could.
“This is a historic moment, and it is not lost on me,”
said Jean-Pierre at a press conference. “I understand how important it is for so many people out there, so many different communities. … I stand on their shoulders, and I have been throughout my career.”
Jean-Pierre was born on Martinique, a French island, and raised in New York City. She graduated from the New York Institute of Technology and received a master’s degree from Columbia University.
She is currently Deputy Press Secretary and Deputy Assistant to the President. She has served in senior communications and political roles in the Biden administration, in the Biden campaign and at the time Vice President Biden for the Obama administration. Jean-Pierre joined Columbia University in 2014, where she is a lecturer in international and public affairs.
Octavia Goredema, a career coach as a writer
Prep, Push, Pivot: Essential Career Strategies for Underrepresented Women (Wiley, 2022), said that Jean-Pierre’s appointment represents a significant achievement in diversity, justice and inclusion (DE & I).
“As a career coach who helps under-represented professionals advance their careers, I know what an uphill battle it often is to be seen, heard, supported, recognized and respected,” said Goredema. “It’s always amazing to witness barriers being broken, and Karine Jean-Pierre’s term as White House press secretary begins at such a crucial time.”
Brian K. Bond, CEO of the LGBTQ organization PFLAG, is a friend and former colleague of Jean-Pierre. He said Jean-Pierre’s historic appointment demonstrated the Biden administration’s allies.
“Not only is she among the smartest, hardest working, sincere and kind individuals in public service, she both symbolizes and embodies the many identities and life experiences that this White House speaks through and occasionally as the official spokesperson representing our President,” Bond said. so.
The Biden administration has strongly focused on DE&I.
