President Obama:
Greetings, massive!
(laughter and applause)
Wah gwaan, Jamaica?
(applause)
Can everybody
please give Aubrey
a big round of applause for
the great introduction?
(applause)
I want to thank the
University of the West Indies
for hosting us.
Big up, You-Wee!
(applause)
Thank you.
I've been making
myself at home here.
(laughter)
It is great to be in
beautiful Jamaica --
not only because I'm proud
to be the first 
President of the United States 
to visit in more than 30 years,
but because I just
like the vibe here.
(applause) 
I was born on an island, and 
it was warm, and so I feel right
at home.  And I'm grateful for 
the warm Jamaican hospitality
that I received this
morning, including from
Prime Minister
Simpson-Miller.
I also had the chance to meet
with leaders from across
the Caribbean, where
we focused on issues
of shared prosperity
and shared security.
And tomorrow, I'll meet
with leaders from across
the hemisphere at the Summit
of the Americas in Panama.
But before my trip
became all business,
I wanted to come here and hear
from young people like you.
Because it is your generation
who will shape the future
of our countries and our
region and this planet
that we share long after
those of us who are currently
in public service are
gone from the stage.
So I'm going to only speak
for a few minutes at the top,
because I'd rather spend time
taking questions from you,
and also because after
we have a chance for
our town hall, I get a
chance to say hi to Usain
Bolt and Shelly
Ann Fraser-Pryce.
(applause)
When you have the fastest
people on the planet,
you've got to say
hi to them, right?
Because that's fast.
(laughter)
There are a lot of
people out there,
and they're the fastest.
Now, we are not just nations,
we're also neighbors.
Tens of millions of Americans
are bound to the Caribbean
and the Americas through
ties of commerce,
but also ties of kin.
More than one million
Americans trace their
ancestry to Jamaica.
More than one
million Americans visit
Jamaica each year.
So we're committed to
you and this region.
And as I've said before, in
our foreign policy there
are no senior or junior
partners in the Americas;
there are just partners.
And that's one reason why
the United States has
started a new chapter
in our relations with
the people of Cuba.
(applause)
We will continue to have
some differences with
the Cuban government, but we
don't want to be imprisoned
by the past.
When something doesn't
work for 50 years,
you don't just keep on doing
it; you try something new.
(applause)
And we are as committed
as ever to supporting
human rights and
political freedom in Cuba
and around the world.
But I believe that engagement
is a more powerful force
than isolation, and the
changes we are making
can help improve the lives
of the Cuban people.
And I also believe that this
new beginning will be good
for the United States and
the entire hemisphere.
My point is, I believe
we can move past some
of the old debates that so
often define the region,
and move forward in a way
that benefits your generation
with new thinking -- an
energetic, impatient,
dynamic and diverse
generation that you
represent, both in
the United States
and across this
hemisphere.
More than 100 million
people in Latin America
and the Caribbean are between
the ages of 15 and 24.
Most of the region
is under 35.
And what gives me so much hope
about your generation is that
you're more interested in the
hard work of waging peace
than resorting to the quick
impulses of conflict.
You're more interested in the
hard work of building prosperity
through entrepreneurship,
not cronyism or corruption.
(applause)
You're more eager
for progress that comes
not by holding down any
segment of society,
but by holding up the
rights of every human being,
regardless of what we look
like, or how we pray,
or who we love.
You care less about the
world as it has been,
and more about the world
as it should be and can be.
And unlike any other
time in our history,
the technology at your
disposal means that you don't
have to wait for the change
that you're looking for;
you have the freedom to
create it in your own
powerful and
disruptive ways.
Many of you already have,
whether by starting your
own enterprises or by
helping others start theirs.
And I'm going to just single
out two remarkable young
leaders who are here today
because I think they're
an example of what is
possible, even in the most
difficult of
circumstances.
So Angeline Jackson
is here today.
Where is Angeline?
There she is, right there.
(applause)
Several years ago,
when Angeline was 19,
she and a friend were
kidnapped, held at gunpoint
and sexually assaulted.
And as a woman,
and as a lesbian,
justice and society were
not always on her side.
But instead of remaining
silent, she chose to speak
out and started her own
organization to advocate
for women like her, and
get them treatment and get
them justice, and push
back against stereotypes,
and give them some sense
of their own power.
And she became a
global activist.
But more than anything, she
cares about her Jamaica,
and making it a place
where everybody,
no matter their
color, or their class,
or their sexual orientation,
can live in equality
and opportunity.
That's the power of one
person, what they can do.
(applause)
Jerome Cowans grew up in
a tough part of Kingston.
Where's Jerome?
(applause)
When Jerome was 12,
he saw a friend gunned down.
And when he looked at
the shooters, he said,
"I realized that wasn't
a life I wanted to live.
They had expensive machinery,
but they had nothing else."
So at the ripe old age of 13,
he founded a youth group
to help others like him
stay on the right path.
And he started small,
with only six people,
but they had one
big thing in common
and they believed that
change was possible.
And like Angeline, he was
threatened for his work,
but he kept at it.
And he said, "Things
won't get any better
if no one does anything."
And today, the LEAD Youth Club
he started has six chapters,
including one in Colombia.
His work has taken him
to five continents.
Last year, he became the
first Jamaican to receive
the Nelson Mandela
Innovation Award.
He's just 25 years old.
(applause)
So individuals like those
two young people --
the young people here
today -- you remind
me of something that
Bob Marley once said.
You know I went to
his house yesterday.
(laughter)
I thought, I'm only five
minutes from his house,
I got to go check it out.
(laughter)
And one of the displays
has to do when he was
shot right before a concert
he was supposed to give,
trying to bring the political
factions in Jamaica together.
And he was treated for his
wounds and he went ahead
with the program, went
ahead with the show.
And somebody asked, well,
why would you do that?
He said, "The people
who are trying to make
this world worse are
not taking the day off.
Why should I?"
Why should I?
(applause)
So none of us can afford
to take the day off.
And I want you to
have every chance,
every tool you need to
make this world better.
So today I'm announcing
nearly $70 million
in U.S. investments in
education, training,
and employment programs
for our young people
throughout Latin America
and the Caribbean.
(applause)
And these investments
will help young people
in unemployed and impoverished
and marginalized communities,
and give them a chance to
gain the skills they need
to compete and succeed in
the 21st century economy.
And that's not all.
As President, some of the
initiatives I'm most proud
of the ones that increase my
country's engagement with
the next generation of leaders
like Angeline and Jerome
and all of you -- leaders in
government and civil society,
and entrepreneurship
and the private sector.
Four years ago, I
launched an initiative
called "100,000 Strong
in the Americas."
And the goal was to
have 100,000 U.S.
students studying
in this region,
and 100,000 of this
region's students studying
in the United States by
the end of this decade.
And we are on track
to meet that goal.
So today, to build
on that progress,
I'm proud to launch the Young
Leaders of the Americas
Initiative right
here in Kingston.
(applause)
Let me say this.
This is not your
traditional exchange.
We're going to seek
out the most innovative
young entrepreneurs and
civil society leaders
in the Caribbean, Latin
America, and we're
going to give them a
chance to earn a substantial
continuum of the training
and the resources and the
connections, the networks and
the capital that you need
to make a difference.
So this year, we'll bring two
dozen entrepreneurs and civil
society leaders from Latin
America and the Caribbean --
including young Cuban leaders
-- to the United States.
(applause)
Then next year,
we'll increase this
fellowship to 250
young leaders.
And we'll help you to expand
your commercial and social
ventures; we'll embed you
in an American business
and incubators.
We'll give U.S. participants
the chance to continue
their collaboration with
you in your home countries.
So the idea is that you'll get a
chance to implement your ideas
but now have linkages that
give you access to capital
and research and all the
things you need to mobilize
and implement the kinds of
things that you're doing.
And this isn't
charity for us.
This is an investment
in your future,
because that means it's an
investment in our future --
a future where climate
researchers in the Amazon
can collaborate with
scientists in Alaska.
An idea in Barbados
suddenly can
be developed in an
incubator in Boston.
Anti-gang activities in
Honduras can be connected
to similar activities
in Houston, Texas.
It's a future where any kid
from Kingston can choose
a path that opens his or
her horizons beyond
their neighborhood
to the wider world.
(applause)
And that impulse
to make the world better,
to push back on those
who try to make it worse,
that's something that your
generation has to hold on to.
And you have to remember,
it's never easy;
there are no days off.
But if there's one thing
that I know from my own
life, it's that with hard
work and with hope,
change is always
within our reach.
The Jamaican-American
poet Claude McKay,
who was a central figure
of the Harlem renaissance,
once wrote something along
those lines: "We must strive
on to gain the height although
it may not be in sight."
As long as we've got young
strivers like you -- and I hope
to see you in Washington as
part of this Young Leaders
of the Americas Initiative
-- I'm confident that
a brighter future will
always be in sight.
So thank you very much.
With that, let's
take some questions.
All right, so --
(applause)
All right, since
we're getting to work
I'm going to take my jacket
off and get comfortable.
All right.
There are no rules to this
except that there are
people with microphones
in the audience,
so wait for them to
come when I call on you.
We're going to go
boy, girl, boy,
girl so everybody gets
a chance, so it's fair.
(laughter)
Before your question,
please introduce yourself
and tell us where
you are from, okay?
And try to keep your question
or comment relatively short
so we can get more questions
or comments in, okay?
We'll start with this
young lady right here
in the white blouse.
It's a little tight here.
Female Speaker: Thank you.
Yani Campbell (ph), a
lecturer at the University
of the West Indies.
Thank you so much for your
talk, very interesting.
And I wondered as well,
on the Cuban issue,
now that your policy has
actually changed towards Cuba,
I wondered about your views
on how it is that we should
approach -- CARICOM should
approach its relationship
with Cuba in terms of
deepening that relationship.
Should they now perhaps
move to join in CARICOM?
Thank you.
President Obama:
Well, first of all,
I think CARICOM can make
its own decisions
and we'll respect it.
Cuba will be participating in
the Summit of the Americas,
and I think -- it is my strong
belief that if we engage,
that that offers the
greatest prospect for
escaping some of the
constraints of the past.
I think the Cuban people
are extraordinary
and have huge potential.
And what's encouraging is, is
that the overwhelming majority
of Cubans are interested
in ending the Cold War --
the last vestige of the Cold
War -- and moving forward.
It's going to take
some time for
the United States to
fully implement some
of the things that have
already been agreed to,
and it's going to take a
little bit longer before
you actually have
complete normal relations
between the United
States and Cuba.
What I would say to Caribbean
countries is, absolutely,
you should continue to engage
in Cuba in the ways that
you've already doing -- you've
already done in the past.
I do think that it
is important for all
of us to be able to speak
honestly where we see concerns
about issues of human rights
and political freedom.
And I'm not saying
anything publicly that
I haven't said directly
to Raul Castro.
There are still
constraints on the ability
of the Cuban people to express
themselves, or to organize
political parties, or
to start a business.
And sometimes, the same
things we expect for
ourselves and our country,
somehow we think other
people don't want.
But I believe that each
country -- I believe
each country has its
own unique cultures,
its own unique traditions.
I don't expect every
country to pursue the same
policies or have the
same political practices
as the United States.
And I am certainly aware
of the flaws that exist
in our own country
that we have to fix.
But I do believe there
are certain principles
that are universal.
I think that all people want
basic dignity and want basic
freedom, and want to be able to
worship as they please without
being discriminated against,
or they should be able
to speak their mind about an
important issue pertaining
to their community
without being arrested.
And so wherever we see
that, we try to speak out.
But what we also try to do is
engage and recognize that
even with countries that
we have differences,
there's also going to be
commonality and overlap.
And the United States and Cuba
should both have an interest
in dealing with climate
change, for example,
because when the oceans
start lapping upon Miami
or on Havana, nobody is
going to distinguish, well,
where do they stand on this
or that ideological issue.
And so we have to find where
there are areas of cooperation,
but I will continue to try
to be consistent
in speaking out on behalf
of the issues that are
important to all
people, not just some.
All right, it's a
gentleman's turn.
This gentleman
right here.
He looks very serious;
he's got glasses.
Looking sharp.
Plus, he's got a
copy of my book.
(laughter)
So he's
clearly a wise man.
Male Speaker: Thank
you very much.
My name is Chef
Brian Lumley --
I'm a young
Jamaican chef here.
(applause)
And I own a
restaurant --
689 by Brian Lumley.
(laughter)
Just saying.
My question to you --
I'm going to stay
a little bit off the
politics for a bit.
And I've witnessed
your journey a lot,
and the question is
kind of two-part.
If you go back and give
yourself one piece of advice
before the start of you 2008
term, what would it be?
And the second part is if
you can sign this book
when you're finished.
(laughter)
Thank you very much.
President Obama:
I'll sign the book.
So the question was, for those
couldn't hear: If I were to go
back and give myself advice
before I started in 2008,
what would the advice be?
I suppose I could have started
dying my hair earlier --
(laughter)
-- so then people
wouldn't say, man,
he's getting old.
You're going like this --
at least I got hair, man.
(laughter)
I'm teasing you.
I'm messing with you.
I think that -- keep in mind
that when I came into office
we were going through the worst
global financial crisis since
the 1930s, and so we had to
make a series of decisions
very quickly, many of
which were unpopular.
Overall, I think
we got it right.
I think we did the
right thing.
And because, I think,
we took these steps,
not only were we able to avoid
the kind of Great Depression
that we saw in the 1930s, not
only was America able to bounce
back and start growing more
rapidly than most of our peers,
drive down unemployment faster,
create more jobs faster,
but that also had an impact
on the global economy
and it had an impact on
the Caribbean economy,
that we were able to bounce
back quicker than we might
have if we hadn't
taken those steps.
But it was, I think,
costly politically.
And what I would have probably
advised was that I might have
needed to warn the American
people and paint a picture
for them that was more
accurate about the fact that
it would take some time
to dig ourselves out
of a very big hole.
Because FDR, when
he came into office,
the Great Depression had
already been going on for two,
three years, and so people
understood how serious it was.
With us, we came in just
as people were really
starting to feel
the impacts.
And trying to paint a picture
that we'll make it but it's
going to take some time, and
here are the steps that we need
to take -- I think I would have
advised myself to do a better
job spending more time not
just getting the policy right,
but also describing it in
ways that people understood,
that gave them confidence
in their own future.
I think that would probably
be the most important
advice that I would
have given myself.
(applause)
All right, it's a
young lady's turn.
That young lady
right there.
Yes, you.
You, yes.
Oh, well, I'll call
on both of you.
I'll call on you later.
Go ahead.
Female Speaker: Okay, so
we're here and we're looking
at you, and we're all
very honored to be here
and very taken about by
your leadership qualities.
And seeing that you are the
President of the United States
of America and you're
so influential,
I want to know how you
handle the mental strain
that comes with being
in charge of so much.
President Obama:
What's your name?
Female Speaker: Kimberly
-- from the University
of the West Indies.
President Obama: Fantastic.
How do I handle stress?
You know, I'll be
honest with you.
One of the things that happens
as you get older is you start
appreciating both your
strengths and your weaknesses.
Hopefully you gain a
little wisdom about what
you're good at and
what you're not.
And Michelle can give you
a long list of things
I'm not good at.
(laughter)
But one thing
that I've always had,
which has served me well, is
a pretty good temperament.
And I attribute that partly
from growing up on an island
with trade winds and beaches,
and it makes you calm.
But I try not to get too high
when things are going well
so that I don't get too low
when things are going badly,
and try to keep a long view
of how the process
of social change takes place,
and how the trajectory
of your own life is
going to proceed.
We get caught up in the
day-to-day so much,
and it's interesting now when
I'm talking to my daughters
and "somebody said something
at school," or there's --
"well, I didn't do quite as
well on that test as I wanted."
And you want them to
take it seriously,
but you also want to say to
them, you know what, this,
too, shall pass; I promise
you three months from now,
much less 30 years from
now, you will not remember.
And so I think that trying to
keep your eye on the prize
of where it is that
you want to go and not
be discouraged or overly
impressed with yourself
on a day-to-day basis I
think is very important.
And then you have to get some
exercise in the morning.
(laughter)
I don't run
as fast as these folks,
but I get a little exercise,
which does help in terms
of stress relief.
All right.
It's a gentleman's turn.
Let's see, somebody
from this side.
This young man right here
in the sharp-looking
checkered shirt.
Male Speaker: Good afternoon
again, Mr. President.
Especially as it
relates to human rights
and social change -- I'm
Jomain McKenzie and I'm
a focal point with the
Global Fund Board.
As it relates to human
rights and social change,
how do you make the decision to
allow societies to go through
the natural evolutionary
process of having change occur
on their own versus having
governments exert policies
to make these same
political social changes?
President Obama: That's a
really interesting question.
It's an interesting
question and it's one
that I have to struggle
with all the time.
Every society, as I said,
is at a different phase
in development, in
their own history;
they have different
cultural traditions.
And so the way I
think about it is,
is that the United States
has certain core values and
principles that we
believe deeply in.
And we don't necessarily
expect that every country will
formulate how to secure those
ideals and those principles.
We don't expect it to be done
exactly as we do any more
than we expect every --
obviously, our democracy
is not the same as
aJamaican democracy
or a British democracy
or Australian democracy.
But we believe in democracy.
We think that if people
have the ability to speak
out about their own lives,
some sense of agency,
then that society
will be stronger.
And that doesn't mean that we
won't work with a country
that doesn't precisely
abide by those principles,
but we will still speak out.
There are times where a
country is clearly engaging in
activities that are so egregious
that it's not culturally
specific; it typically has to
do with a government wanting
to exert control over
people and oppress them.
And in those instances, I think
it is entirely appropriate
for us to speak out
forcefully and, in some
cases, to not do
business with them.
Look at a country
like North Korea.
I mean, obviously, Korean
culture is different than
American culture.
On the other hand, you look at
what's happening in South Korea
and you look at what's
happening in North Korea
and those are two entirely
different societies.
And I can tell you which
one you'd rather live in.
And if you have a
situation in which people
are being murdered simply
because they didn't
agree with the
government on something
or didn't want their
economic fate to be entirely
determined by the whims of
some government bureaucrat,
and suddenly they're sent to
a labor camp --
that's something where we as
an international community
have to speak out on.
And then there are some
issues that may be culturally
specific, but you know what,
I think they're wrong.
I won't -- we're not going to
try to force that country
to change, but I may try
to shame that country.
There are nations where
slavery still exists.
And that may be part of
the ancient culture
in that society, but
slavery is wrong.
And I'm not going to
give them the excuse
that, well, this
is who we are.
In Africa -- and I can speak
I think fairly as somebody
who is the son of an African
father -- there are practices
like female genital
mutilation that may be part
of the tradition there,
but it's wrong.
And I'm going to say so.
And it will be U.S. policy
to say that it's wrong.
So the tools we use to try
to bring about change
around the world
may vary.
And as I said earlier, we're not
always perfectly consistent.
There are times where we've got
allies who are not observing
all the human rights we would
like, and there are times
where there are countries
that are adversaries
of ours where they do
some things quite well.
And you can't expect
us, or any country,
to be perfectly consistent
in every circumstance.
But what I've tried to do is
be fairly consistent
in terms of what we
believe, what we stand for,
and then we use different
tools depending on what
we think will bring
about the most change.
In some cases, it will just
be a diplomatic statement;
in some cases, it may be serious
enough that we will organize --
try to organize the United
Nations or other multilateral
forums to speak out
against certain practices.
In some cases, it may be so
egregious that we need to
sanction them, and we will try
to organize the international
community in that way.
And then finally, in the
ultimate circumstance,
where the violations of our
values are so severe that they
start spilling over and -- in
the instance of, for example,
genocide -- we may
be say to ourselves,
in concert with the
international community,
we need to intervene because
this government is so brutal
and so unacceptable that we
need to protect people.
But we do that in the
context of an international
conversation so that
we're not simply making
these decisions -- or
we're not so arrogant
that we're not paying
attention to what
the rest of the world
community is saying.
This young lady who I
originally had called
on and got
skipped over.
No, no, this
one right here.
Yes.
Right here.
I'm sorry, I love
you, too, though.
(laughter)
Female Speaker: Good
afternoon, Mr. President.
My name is Katrina
King-Smith.
I'm from the Turks
and Caicos Islands.
My question is
two-part, as well.
Firstly, in countries such as
the Turks and Caicos Islands
where the population is
small and our main sources
of revenue are tourism and
foreign direct investment,
I was wondering if you can
suggest two ways that the
government may better generate
and regulate sustainable
revenue, especially with
regulations currently being
put in place to close
off-shore financial centers.
And secondly, I was wondering
if after your term has ended,
would you mind coming to the
Turks and Caicos to vacation?
(laughter)
President Obama: On the
second question, absolutely.
(laughter)
I'll do some
island-hopping once
I'm out of office.
And you guys can show me
all the good places to go.
(applause)
On this issue of
off-shore financial centers,
we respect each country
to set up its own
financial regulations.
And we recognize that
for small countries,
that providing services --
including financial services --
may be an important
source of revenue.
The one thing that we have to
make sure of is that these
financial centers are not
either used for illicit
money laundering or tax
avoidance by large U.S.
corporations that set
up cut-outs or front
organizations, but as a
practical matter are operating
in the United States, employing
folks in the United States,
essentially headquartered in
the United States and yet,
somehow, their mailing
address is such-and-such
island where they
have to pay no taxes.
Those are the kinds of
egregious concerns that we're
trying to deal with.
I think we try to take it
on a case-by-case basis.
And in my CARICOM
meeting that I just had,
this issue was brought up.
There were a number of leaders
who expressed concern that
maybe they were being
unfairly labeled as areas
of high financial risk.
And what I committed to them
is we will examine their
complaints and go through in
very concrete ways where our
concerns are and how our
governments can work together.
More broadly, I think that
the -- if you look at some
of the most successful
countries in the world,
they're actually pretty small
countries -- like Singapore,
for example -- that on paper
look like they have no assets,
and yet, if you go to
Singapore, it has one
of the highest standards
of living in the world.
What is it that Singapore did
that might be replicable?
Well, one of the most
important things they did was
they made an enormous
investment in their people.
(applause)
And if you've
got a highly skilled,
highly educated workforce, if
you've set up rules of law
and governance that are
transparent and non-corrupt,
then you can attract actually
a lot of service industries
to supplement the tourist
industry, because people
would want to locate
in your country.
You could envision people
wanting to operate and have
offices there where you've
got a trained workforce.
And these days, so many
businesses are operating over
the Internet that if you've
got a really skilled workforce
that provides value
added, you will attract
companies and you'll
attract businesses.
What deters people from
investing in most countries is
conflict, corruption, and a lack
of skills or infrastructure.
And those countries that
are able to address those
problems have rule of law
and eliminate corruption.
Make sure that you are investing
in the education of your people
and it's a continuous
education; it doesn't just
stop at the lower grades,
but you give people
constant opportunities
to upgrade their skills.
You have a decent
infrastructure -- you're going
to be able to succeed.
That's the recipe, the formula
for a 21st-century economy.
All right.
Uh oh, they're starting
to holler at me.
(laughter)
Let's see, I haven't
gone back here in a while.
This gentleman in the
blue shirt right here.
Male Speaker: Thanks
so much, Mr. President.
We know that there's been
an increasing military
assertiveness of
China, especially
in the South China Sea.
And it seems that the
U.S. has responded
to that by pledging
to increase its military
presence because it
recognizes the danger that
that military increase of
China poses to its friends
and allies there.
Now, China's growing power isn't
just military, it's economic.
On this side of the world,
China has used this soft power,
this economic power especially
to woo Caribbean governments.
My questions are,
how does the U.S.
view China's influence
in its own backyard,
especially since you've just
talked about the Cold War
and alliances?
And secondly, what
plan does the U.S. have,
if any, to contribute
more to economic life
in the Caribbean to
ward off China in terms
of foreign direct
investment?
(applause)
Thank you very much,
Mr. President.
President Obama:
What's your name?
Male Speaker: Oh, sorry.
My name is Newton Harris
from the University of
Technology-Jamaica.
(applause)
President Obama: Fantastic.
Well, first of all, let
me say that it is U.S.
official policy and it
is my strong belief that
we should welcome
China's peaceful rise.
What China has done in the last
20, 30 years is remarkable.
More people have been lifted
out of poverty in a shorter
period of time than perhaps
any time in human history.
(applause)
And that's
good for the world.
I mean, we should be more
fearful of a poorer,
collapsing China than a China
that is participating in the
world marketplace and trading
and is getting along with
its neighbors and part of
the international order,
because there are a really
large number of Chinese
people and we want
them to be doing well.
So our policy is not to
fear China's peaceful rise.
Where we get concerned with
China is where it is not
necessarily abiding by
international norms and rules,
and is using its size and
muscle to force countries
into subordinate positions.
And that's the concern we
have around maritime issues.
We think this can be
solved diplomatically,
but just because the
Philippines or Vietnam are
not as large as China
doesn't mean that they
can just be
elbowed aside.
And, by the way, we don't
have a particular view
on the territorial disputes,
the maritime disputes.
Our attitude is simply,
let's use the mechanisms
that we have in place
internationally
to resolve them.
Now, with respect to Chinese
investment in the Caribbean
or in the Americas, in
the Western Hemisphere,
my response is the same one
that I gave when I was asked
this question in Africa,
which is, if China is making
investments that are building
up infrastructure, or improving
education, or helping the
people, then we welcome that.
We think that's great.
The only thing is you
got to make sure you
look at what strings
may be attached.
If the investments are made
and it's solely to build
a road to a mine to extract
raw materials that are
going to then be
immediately going
to a port and
shipped to China,
and if Chinese workers are
shipped in to build the road --
(applause)
-- and if you don't know
exactly what the deal was
with the government that led to
China getting the contract --
(applause)
-- in those situations,
it may not be, in fact,
serving the long-term
interests of the country.
Now, I would say -- by
the way, I'd say the same
thing about the
United States.
So if we come in with an
aid package to your
country, and we say we
got this great deal,
we're going to give you $100
million for such and such,
but if when you evaluate
the actual benefits,
it's U.S. companies that are
disproportionately benefitting
from it, and it's creating a
situation where over the long
term the United States is
making a whole lot of profits
but is not leaving behind a
sustainable industrial base
or ways in which that country
can develop, then you
have to evaluate that and
try to get a better deal.
So what I'm saying is
not unique to China.
I think that's how all
countries should be operating.
Your government
should be transparent;
it should be clear about
what you're getting.
There should be an accounting
of how the money flows.
(applause)
There should be a sense
that over the long term,
Jamaican businesses or
somebody from Belize
is getting a job,
or -- right?
I mean, there should be
some sense of how is this
benefitting us over
the long term.
And that's I think the
only criteria that we're
going to lay out.
Now, last thing I'll say
-- because you asked --
you kind of posed, is there
like a bidding war going
on here for affections.
The Chinese are giving us
flowers and chocolates --
(laughter)
-- what are you
doing for us lately?
(laughter)
And so what
I would say is this.
The United States, I
think historically,
has been an enormous
provider of development aid.
Not always, by the way, has it
followed the rule I just laid
out in terms of whether or
not the local recipients are
benefitting, but I think we've
gotten a lot better at that.
And if you look at
institutions like
the World Bank or other
multilateral institutions,
we remain the largest
contributors by far.
So sometimes when you get money
from a multilateral institution
-- you look at who's doing
what; if you look at what
happens in terms of when
Haiti gets decimated,
who's raising the money --
we tend to look pretty good.
It turns out we're doing
more than our fair share.
And we will continue
to do that.
We do have some
fiscal constraints.
And sometimes, I think --
when I travel to the Americas,
to the region, people ask,
why don't we have sort
of the kinds of Alliance
for Progress programs with
huge sums of money.
Well, part of it is, is that
right after World War II,
the United States was so
large relative to the rest
of the world.
Japan was decimated;
Europe was decimated.
Huge chunks of the world were
behind the Iron Curtain.
And so it was natural that
we gave fivefold
or tenfold more than
anybody else could do.
Well, things have evened out,
in case you haven't noticed.
We're still, by far, the most
powerful nation on Earth
and we still do more
than everybody else,
but we do expect others to step
up and do their fair share.
But I can guarantee you this: We
will always do our fair share.
And nowhere is that truer than
in the Caribbean and in the
Americas, because you are
our neighbors and some
of our closest friends.
(applause)
Let's see.
It's a young lady's turn.
This young lady right here.
Right here.
Female Speaker:
Welcome, Mr. President.
I lived a block away
from you in Chicago when
I went to the
University of Chicago.
President Obama:
Is that right?
Female Speaker: And my
college sweetheart, Sam Kass,
was your private chef
until very recently.
President Obama: Oh, wow!
(laughter)
Well, you're just
putting Sam's business
all out there.
(laughter)
All right.
What's your name?
Female Speaker:
Lisandra Rickards.
I work for the Branson
Centre of Entrepreneurship.
President Obama: Cassandra?
Female Speaker: Lisandra.
President Obama: Lisandra.
All right.
Well, I'll tease
Sam about this one.
(laughter)
Female Speaker: Please do.
(laughter)
President Obama: Everybody
knows about you now.
Go ahead.
Female Speaker: My question
is around immigration.
We've heard a lot about
your immigration policy for
undocumented immigrants who are
currently living in the U.S.
But what about hopeful
families that are seeking
a legal pathway for
immigration into the U.S.
but are finding seven- to
ten-year delays before they
even can get to apply?
I'd love to hear you talk some
more about your policy regarding
shortening that timeline
and making it less onerous
on the applicants.
President Obama: Good.
That's a great question.
That's a great question.
(applause)
The United States
is a nation of immigrants.
And this region has
contributed to the remarkable
progress that the United
States has made over
the last two centuries.
And my goal during the
course of my presidency has
been to make sure we
continue to be a nation
of immigrants as well as a
nation of laws, and that
we're attracting talent from
all around the world.
Part of what makes us
special is you walk
in Brooklyn and there are
folks from everywhere.
But they're all striving,
they're all talented,
they're all trying to make
their dreams come true.
And that is what gives us
the energy and the strength
to be able to accomplish
everything we've accomplished.
So we need to fix
what is, right now,
a broken immigration system.
Part of it is dealing with those
who are undocumented but who
have been living there a long
time, are part of the community,
providing them with a pathway
in which they have to earn
a legal status, but
recognizing that they're there
and we're not going to be
separating out families.
That's not who we are.
That's not true
to our values.
And ultimately, it's not
good for our economy.
But you are absolutely right
that part of the reason that
some people take the illegal
route is because we make the
legal route so difficult.
And so we're trying
to identify ways
to streamline that process.
Now, I have to be honest.
A lot of people want
to come to America.
So unless we just
had no borders,
there's always
going to be a wait.
There's always going to
be background checks.
There's always going to
be some prioritization
in terms of who's
admitted and who's not.
But I do think that there
are practices we have -- for
example, where someone has a
relation in the United States,
is clearly qualified to
become at some point
a legal resident and maybe
in the future a citizen,
but in order to do it they have
to first leave the country,
wait, and now they're
separated from their families.
I mean, there have to be
ways in which we can make
the system clearer
and less burdensome.
Some of those changes we wanted
to make were in the legislation
that was proposed and passed
the United States Senate.
I think there is still the
opportunity to get that done
before my presidency is
over, but it does require
the Republican Party
I think to engage
with me in a more
serious effort,
and to put aside
the politics.
Thank you very much
for the question.
(applause)
All right, this side
has been neglected right here.
I'm going to go with this
guy with the beard, man,
because he looks a
little bit like --
(applause)
-- he looks a little bit
like Marshawn Lynch.
(laughter)
Male Speaker:
Greetings, Mr. President.
President Obama: How are you?
Male Speaker: More life
and blessings on you
and your family.
President Obama:
What's your name?
Male Speaker: My name
is Miguel Williams,
but you can call --
I am Steppa.
(laughter)
President Obama: Steppa.
Male Speaker: Yeah, man,
that is quite sufficient.
Yeah, man.
My question has to
do and surrounds U.S.
policy as it regards
the legalization,
the decriminalization
of marijuana.
President Obama: How did I
anticipate this question?
(laughter)
Male Speaker: Yeah, man.
President Obama: How did
I guess this question?
Male Speaker: Yes.
And, Mr. President, it really
comes under (inaudible).
We face economic challenges
with the IMF, et cetera.
And and we find realistically
that the hemp industry,
the marijuana industry
provides a highly
feasible alternative
to rise above poverty.
So I am wanting to over stand
and to understand how U.S.
is envisioning and how you
would you see Jamaica pushing
forward on a decriminalization,
legalization emphasis
on the hemp industry.
(applause)
President Obama: Okay.
Well.
(laughter)
Let me -- I do want to
separate out what are serious
issues in the United States
and then how that relates
to our foreign policy and our
interactions with the region.
There is the issue of
legalization of marijuana,
and then there is the
issue of decriminalizing
or dealing with the
incarceration and,
in some cases, devastation
of communities
as a consequence of
nonviolent drug offenses.
I am a very strong believer
that the path that we have
taken in the United States in
the so-called "War on Drugs"
has been so heavy in
emphasizing incarceration
that it has been
counterproductive.
You have young people who
did not engage in violence
who get very long penalties,
get placed in prison,
and then are rendered
economically unemployable,
are almost pushed into, then,
the underground economy,
learn crime more
effectively in prison,
families are devastated.
So it's been very
unproductive.
And what we're trying
to do is to reform our
criminal justice system.
And the good news is there has
actually been some interest
on the part of unlikely allies
like the evangelical community
or some otherwise very
conservative Republicans,
because it's very expensive
to incarcerate people,
and a recognition that this
may not be the best approach.
So that's one issue.
There's then the second issue
of legalizing marijuana,
whether it's medical marijuana
or recreational use.
There are two states in the
United States that have
embarked on an experiment to
decriminalize or legalize
marijuana -- Colorado
and Washington State.
And we will see how that
experiment works its way
through the process.
Right now, that is
not federal policy,
and I do not foresee
anytime soon Congress
changing the law at
a national basis.
But I do think that if there
are states that show that
they are not suddenly a
magnet for additional crime,
that they have a strong enough
public health infrastructure
to push against the potential
of increased addiction,
then it's conceivable
that that will spur
on a national debate.
But that is going
to be some time off.
And then the third
issue is what will U.S.
international policy be.
And we had some discussion
with the CARICOM
countries about this.
I know on paper a lot of
folks think, you know what,
if we just legalize
marijuana, then it'll reduce
the money flowing into the
transnational drug trade,
there are more revenues
and jobs created.
I have to tell you that it's
not a silver bullet, because,
first of all, if you are
legalizing marijuana,
then how do you deal
with other drugs,
and where do you
draw the line?
Second of all, as is true in
the global economy generally,
if you have a bunch of small
medium-sized marijuana
businesses scattered
across the Caribbean
and this is suddenly legal,
if you think that big
multi-national
companies are not going
to suddenly come in and
market and try to control
and profit from the
trade -- that's I think
a very real scenario.
And so I think we have to
have a conversation about
this, but our current
policy continues to be that
in the United States, we
need to decrease demand.
We need to focus on a
public health approach
to decreasing demand.
We have to stop the flow of guns
and cash into the Caribbean
and Central America
and Latin America.
(applause)
And at the same time,
I think the Caribbean,
Latin America have to -- Central
America -- have to cooperate
with us to try to shrink the
power of the transnational drug
organizations that are vicious
and hugely destructive.
And if we combine a public
health perspective,
a focus on not simply throwing
every low-level person with
possession into prison by
trying to get them treatment,
if we combine that with
economic development
and alternative
opportunities for youth,
then I think we can
strike the right balance.
It may not comport with your --
completely with your vision
for the future, but I think
that we could certainly have
a smarter approach to it
than we currently do.
Got time for one
more question.
One more question.
Let's see -- this
is always hard.
It's always hard to be that
last -- it's a lady's turn,
so all the guys just have
to put down their hands.
It's too late for you.
Let's see.
You know what, I'm
just going to go with
this young lady
right here.
She's just right in front.
Go ahead, yes, you.
Hold on a second,
wait for the mic.
(laughter)
Female Speaker:
Afternoon, Mr. President.
I'm Alana Williams (ph), I'm
from the South Side of Chicago.
President Obama: Wait,
you're from Chicago?
Female Speaker: Yes!
President Obama: Well,
what are you doing here?
This is supposed to be for
Caribbean young ladies.
Female Speaker: Actually,
I attend Olivet Nazarene
University and I'm studying
abroad, so I'm here.
President Obama: I see, okay.
Well, you're cheating
a little bit.
I'll have to call on
somebody else after you.
(laughter)
But I'm going to go
ahead and let you ask
a question real quick.
Because I'll see
you in Chicago.
(laughter)
Female Speaker: Most definitely.
My question is really
more so about home.
I love my city, but the
violence is terrible,
specifically amongst
young black men.
And I know we're talking a
lot about police brutality,
but I've lost a lot of
friends from people who
look just like me.
And that's the problem.
And so I would like to
know what you believe
is the true source of the
violence, and what
is one solution to an
extreme problem.
Thank you.
President Obama: Well, look,
I know you asked it about
Chicago but I know there
are neighborhoods right
here in Jamaica that have
the same problems,
and in every place all
across the Caribbean;
certainly in
Central America.
I don't think there is
just one single factor.
Obviously, a contributor is
one that we just talked about,
which is the drug trade.
If you have an illicit
trade that generates huge
amounts of money and is
not regulated above board,
that is going to attract
ultimately people trying
to carve out turf, trying
to control markets,
and violence ensues.
So that's point number one.
Point number two is the easy
accessibility of weapons.
And we were talking earlier
about different traditions;
the United States has a
tradition of gun ownership
that is deep; dates back
to the pioneer past.
And I think it is a mistake
that we do not do a better job
of putting in place common-sense
gun-safety regulations
that would keep guns out
of the hands of criminals,
but unfortunately a
majority of Congress does
not agree with me.
Even after six-year-olds
were gunned down viciously
in their classroom, we
could not get action done.
But what we are doing is
cooperating with the region
as we are cooperating with
local jurisdictions
to try to stem at least
the flow of guns using
the administrative
tools that I have.
So that's number two.
Number three is providing
alternative paths
for young people.
If a young person is reading
by the age -- by the third
grade and at grade level, if
they are enjoying school,
if they see a path for
success, then they are less
likely to get involved in
criminal activity and that
will reduce gun violence,
and that will reduce
crime, and that will
reduce death.
(applause)
Which means investing
in things like early childhood
education and improving our
schools -- those things
are absolutely vital.
(applause)
But there is a fourth
element to this,
and that is our own
responsibility.
And particularly, as I
speak to young people here
today, we always talk about
what can we do about
the violence as if it's like
just separate and apart.
But we have control
in our communities
of our immediate friends,
our immediate family.
We influence our peers.
And I do think that the power
that all of you have as young
leaders to be able to not
make excuses for violence --
because there are a whole
bunch of folks who have
really tough backgrounds
and come from terrible
circumstances, and
are really poor,
but they don't go around
shooting somebody.
They don't beat somebody over
the head because of sneakers
or because they looked
at them the wrong way.
And so there is an element of
us retaking our communities
and being willing to speak
out against violence
in our midst.
That doesn't ignore
all the social factors.
But Dr. King used to say it's
not an either/or situation,
it's a both/and situation.
Government has to act.
We have to have
effective policing,
which means policing that is
actually protecting as opposed
to some of the things that
we've been seeing of late
in the United States,
and I'm sure is true
in other countries.
And I say that saying that
police have an extraordinarily
difficult job, and the
overwhelming majority
do a great job under
severe circumstances.
But there's got to be trust
built between the communities,
and I had to put a task
force together that put
together some excellent
reports in the wake
of Ferguson around how
we can do that.
But ultimately, what
happens in the home,
what happens in the school
-- some of you are parents
already; some of you will be
parents -- what we teach
our children in terms of
values, valuing themselves,
valuing others, that's
important, too.
(applause)
So there's
no single solution.
But all of us have
to do better.
Because the tragedy of what
we see in the United States
but also in cities and towns
all across the Caribbean
and Central America,
is terrible.
And there's no
excuse for it.
All right.
Because I called
accidentally on a Chicagoan,
I've got to call
on one more person.
Look, this young lady stood
up, so she showed --
that wasn't fair, but I
called on her, go ahead.
You're not from
Chicago are you?
Female Speaker: No.
President Obama:
You promise?
Okay.
All right, get the
mic -- oh, I'm sorry.
You know what, I confess,
even though I was going
to call on you, she
thought she was going
to be called on.
I'm going to call
on both of you now,
but each of you get a
really short question.
Really short, quick.
Female Speaker: Well,
I'm the team leader for
the Global Entrepreneurship
Monitor and I want
to thank you for the
initiatives that you're
planning to do here.
And I wanted to invite you to
our annual general meeting
that's going to be held
in Babson in the States,
so we want you to come
because you are part
of a global team.
So I'm representing Jamaica
as the youngest female team
leader, and I'm inviting you
to come so we can talk
about Startup America
and we can collaborate
on different projects.
So I'm inviting you
to come to that event.
President Obama:
Okay, that was good.
And I can say I'll
await your invitation.
And what I will say very
quickly is entrepreneurship,
small- and medium-sized
businesses,
that is a priority and that
means that we've got to create
channels for access to
capital, technical training.
These are areas where a
lot of our development
aid is shifting.
Instead of just giving
somebody a fish,
we want to teach
them how to fish.
(applause)
And what you're seeing
-- what you see among
young people all
around the world is,
is that instead of just finding
a job in a big organization,
they may want to create
something of their own,
a new vision.
And that kind of creativity
has to be tapped.
So we're shifting a lot of the
work that we do around issues
of entrepreneurship, so I'll
be interested in seeing
what you have to say.
All right.
This young lady
right here, go ahead.
Female Speaker:
Hello, everyone.
Hi, Mr. President.
My name is Davianne Tucker,
and I'm the Guild
president-elect for the
University of the West Indies.
(applause)
Thank you.
So my question is, the
Jamaican government has
been holding firmly
to the stipulations
of the IMF agreement.
There are many who would
like to know if the debt
write-offs for Jamaica are
being considered as a means
of improving the
livelihood of our people.
So is that being considered?
President Obama: Well, this
came up in my bilateral
with your Prime Minister.
And, look, historically, I
think there has been times
where the IMF or the
international multilateral
organizations worked
with governments in ways
that weren't always
productive, got them deep
into debt, and then
suddenly you've got a lot
more flowing out
than was going in.
And in some cases there were
governments around the world
that were corrupt, lent money,
money goes into a Swiss bank
account, suddenly the people
are paying off for decades.
In Jamaica, some of it just
had to do with tough
circumstances, not always
the best fiscal management.
I think that the current
government has been wise
to work hard to abide by
the IMF provisions.
That's not been easy.
And I think that has been
the right thing to do.
But what I also agreed with,
when I spoke to the Prime
Minister, is the need
to try to address
in a more systematic fashion
how we can spur growth
and not just put the
squeeze on folks.
Because what it turns
out is, is that if a --
the best way for a country
to reduce its debt
is to grow really fast, and
to generate more income.
(applause)
Now, that does require
development plans
and approaches that
are productive.
And it is true that
sometimes that requires some
short-term sacrifice.
And I think the question
that the people of Jamaica,
just like the people of
the United States
and everywhere else,
should be asking is:
If the government is
spending money right now,
is it on something
that is going to help
create long-term growth
and help people succeed?
(applause)
If the answer is no, you
shouldn't spend that money.
Spending money just for
the sake of spending money
is not -- that's not the
formula for success.
But if the money is being
spent on what we talked
about -- early childhood
education; if it's being
spent on infrastructure;
if it's being spent
on research; if it's
being spent on building
skills for workers -- those
are good investments.
And I do think that the
international financial
institutions have to accommodate
the interests of countries who
have a sound plan for growth so
that they cannot just stay
in this static state but can,
over time, thrive and succeed.
And the way that's going
to happen is because
of outstanding young
leaders like you.
I've had a great
conversation.
Thank you, Jamaica.
Thank you.
Appreciate it,
young leaders.
God bless you.
(applause)
