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Secretary Rubio Hosts 19th International Women of Courage Awards with First Lady Melania Trump

April 1, 2025 · The White House · 0:38:55

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What happened

The State Department held the 19th International Women of Courage Awards ceremony, hosted by Secretary of State Marco Rubio with First Lady Melania Trump delivering remarks, according to the White House video. Katrina Fotovat of the Secretary’s Office of Global Women’s Issues said the award, established by former Secretary Condoleezza Rice, celebrates women leaders who have demonstrated exceptional courage, strength and leadership at great personal risk, and she outlined the office’s work under what she called President Trump’s America First vision — protecting women and girls from violence, advancing women’s participation in peace and security processes, and supporting women’s economic empowerment, as stated in her remarks.

Rubio thanked the First Lady for joining the ceremony at the State Department and honored the award recipients, and he personally thanked his wife Jeanette, according to the video. Introducing the First Lady, the program turned to Melania Trump, who said she has harnessed the power of love as a source of strength during challenging times, and that the ceremony celebrates courage — a strength based in love — as stated in her remarks.

Spokesperson Tammy Bruce then presented the awards to the eight honorees, according to the video. They included Amit Soussana of Israel, the first Israeli hostage from the October 7th attack to publicly recount the sexual violence she suffered in Hamas captivity; Henriette Da of Burkina Faso, a human rights defender appointed president of her country’s National Human Rights Commission in 2018; Major Velena Iga of Papua New Guinea, recognized for combating trafficking and violence against women; and Angelique Songco of the Philippines, the ‘Mama Ranger’ leading protection of the Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park, as presented in the ceremony.

Why it matters

The ceremony is the State Department’s flagship annual recognition of women leaders abroad, and this year’s edition — with the First Lady headlining and a former Hamas hostage among the honorees — ties it directly to the administration’s post-October 7 narrative.

Sources: The White House, “First Lady Melania Trump Delivers Remarks at the 19th International Women of Courage Awards Ceremony”, 2025-04-01 (official upload, embedded above; published 2025-04-01). Transcript via Supadata (private research store, paraphrased and attributed, not republished). All figures and characterizations as stated by the speakers.