Summary:
- On May 1, MacDella Cooper claimed that Liberia presented the first female President of the United Nations General Assembly, who was Angie Brooks
- Madam Cooper made the claim during a press briefing at the Ministry of Information
- We have fact-checked this claim by consulting relevant authoritative sources and found her statement to be incorrect
On May 1, Macdella Cooper, Senior Political Advisor to President Joseph Boakai, claimed at the Ministry of Information, Cultural Affairs and Tourism (MICAT), regular press briefing, that Liberia presented the first female President of the United Nations General Assembly, referring to Angie Brooks.
Madam Cooper made the claim while highlighting the potential benefits Liberia stands to gain if elected to a non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council.
Claim
Said Madam Cooper: “Liberia presented the first female President of the General Assembly, which was Angie Brooks”.
Rating Justification
To verify this claim, we reviewed the websites of multiple authoritative sources, including United Nations archives and reputable historical references.
According to a United Nations News article titled “Woman elected as head of UN General Assembly for fourth time in 73 years,” the first woman elected President of the General Assembly was Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit of India in 1953.
Angie Brooks of Liberia was later elected to the same position in 1969, making her the second woman and the first African woman to hold the post.
Excerpt from the article reads: “There have been only three previous women General Assembly Presidents or PGAs as they are known. In 1953, India’s Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, pictured at UN Headquarters alongside the then Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld, was elected as the 8th and first woman President.
Liberia’s Angie Brooks became the second female PGA in 1969.”
A UN archival story published on March 6, 2024 featured India’s political dynamo Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit as the eighth President of the General Assembly, the first woman ever elected to the position.
“In 1953, UN Member States elected India’s political dynamo Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit as the eighth President of the General Assembly, the first woman ever elected to the role,” it added.
Wisconsin Women Making History, an educational online resource for students and lifetime learners to find remarkable women who have contributed to Wisconsin’s state legacy, features Angie Brooks as the first African woman and second woman ever to be elected president of the Assembly, where she presided over the 24th session (1969-190).
“She was Liberia’s delegate to the United Nations General Assembly for many years, and was the first African woman — and second woman ever — to be elected president of the Assembly, where she presided over the 24th session (1969-1970).”
Conclusion
Based on the research conducted, we conclude that Madam Cooper’s claim that Angie Brooks was the first female president of the UN General Assembly is incorrect. While Brooks holds the distinction of being the first African woman in that role, she was not the first female overall.
