---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't know why women would think they…"
description: "\"I don't know why women would think they would be underrepresented in that 40 per cent, and I do not know why they think they would be underrepresented ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fff/thabo-mbeki-2259_areas_i-don-t-know-why-women-would-think-they_3220731.png"
---

#  I don't know why women would think they would be…

![“I don't know why women would think they would be underrepresented in that 40 per cent, and I do not know why they think they would be underrepresented in that 60 per cent either. Because, any community that has their traditional leader in the area, one would expect that, among the people, they…” quote by Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fff/thabo-mbeki-2259_areas_i-don-t-know-why-women-would-think-they_3220731.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fff/thabo-mbeki-2259_areas_i-don-t-know-why-women-would-think-they_3220731.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fff/thabo-mbeki-2259_areas_i-don-t-know-why-women-would-think-they_3220731.png)

> “I don't know why women would think they would be underrepresented in that 40 per cent, and I do not know why they think they would be underrepresented in that 60 per cent either. Because, any community that has their traditional leader in the area, one would expect that, among the people, they would want to ensure that this committee, that 60%, is properly representative.”

[Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The speaker questions why women expect underrepresentation despite leadership presence, implying representation should be natural.

**In simple terms:** Women shouldn't expect underrepresentation if leaders are present.

Key Takeaway

Challenge assumptions about representation.

Themes

gender politics representation

Mood

critical thoughtful

Type

analytical questioning

When to use this quote

- corporate boards
- government committees

Key Concepts

social equity leadership dynamics

Questions to Reflect On

- Why might representation still lag?
- What barriers persist despite leadership?

A Different Perspective

representation may still be uneven despite leadership.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) [Feminism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminism/) [Leader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leader/) [Leadership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leadership/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Representatives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/representatives/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/)

## Related quotes

> [My feeling has always been that 'Good Eats' would have never happened had it been left to a committee.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alton-brown/my-feeling-has-always-been-that-good-eats-would-have-never-happened/)

[Alton Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alton-brown/)

> [Movies are always made by committees, and the writer is not at the head of the committee. Thus, mush.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-espenson/movies-are-always-made-by-committees-and-the-writer-is-not-at-the/)

[Jane Espenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-espenson/)

> [The more committees you belong to, the less of ordinary life you will understand. When your daily round becomes nothing more than a daily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stella-benson/the-more-committees-you-belong-to-the-less-of-ordinary-life-you-will/)

[Stella Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stella-benson/)

> [Something the committee had not done in 50 years. Jeff Sessions is now the Chairman of the Committee that rejected him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-o-donnell/something-the-committee-had-not-done-in-50-years-jeff-sessions-is-now/)

[Lawrence O'Donnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-o-donnell/)

> [I have no personal vendetta against Clarence Thomas. I seek only to provide the committee with information which it may regard as relevant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anita-hill/i-have-no-personal-vendetta-against-clarence-thomas-i-seek-only-to/)

[Anita Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anita-hill/)

> [Can anything be more Un-American than the Un-American committee?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/burt-lancaster/can-anything-be-more-un-american-than-the-un-american-committee/)

[Burt Lancaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/burt-lancaster/)

> [I will not be making appointments to a committee that is not bipartisan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-pelosi/i-will-not-be-making-appointments-to-a-committee-that-is-not/)

[Nancy Pelosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-pelosi/)

> [You can't have cinema by committee if you're trying to do it well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janeane-garofalo/you-can-t-have-cinema-by-committee-if-you-re-trying-to-do-it-well/)

[Janeane Garofalo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janeane-garofalo/)

> [“committees can criticize, but they cannot create.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ogilvy/committees-can-criticize-but-they-cannot-create/)

[David Ogilvy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ogilvy/)

> [Committees are consumers and sometimes sterilizers of ideas, rarely creators of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-a-kissinger/committees-are-consumers-and-sometimes-sterilizers-of-ideas-rarely/)

[Henry A. Kissinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-a-kissinger/)

> [Committees are to get everybody together and homogenize their thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/art-linkletter/committees-are-to-get-everybody-together-and-homogenize-their-thinking/)

[Art Linkletter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/art-linkletter/)

> [One of the great joys this year and the year before has been how all of the people in this body, men and women,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hayes/one-of-the-great-joys-this-year-and-the-year-before-has-been-how-all/)

[Robin Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hayes/)

> [Government likes committees... a lot. Committees kill all the really good ideas and generally all the really bad ideas. They produce middle-ground mush.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-devos/government-likes-committees-a-lot-committees-kill-all-the-really-good/)

[Betsy DeVos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-devos/)

> [It is necessary to get a lot of men together, for the show of the thing, otherwise the world will not believe. That is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-trollope/it-is-necessary-to-get-a-lot-of-men-together-for-the-show-of-the/)

[Anthony Trollope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-trollope/)

> [I would rather deal with a tyrant any day than a committee. Committees, as a general rule, aren’t willing to take chances, which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hal-riney/i-would-rather-deal-with-a-tyrant-any-day-than-a-committee-committees/)

Hal Riney

## More by Thabo Mbeki

> [We should never become despondent because the weather is bad, nor should we turn triumphalist because the sun shines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/we-should-never-become-despondent-because-the-weather-is-bad-nor/)

[Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

> [That surely must be a concern to anyone who decides this drug must be given to stop transmissions, again from mother to child, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/that-surely-must-be-a-concern-to-anyone-who-decides-this-drug-must-be/)

[Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

> [We are not being arrogant or complacent when we are said that our country, as a united nation, has never in its entire history,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/we-are-not-being-arrogant-or-complacent-when-we-are-said-that-our/)

[Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

> [I think that probably the most important thing about our education was that it taught us to question even those things we thought we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/i-think-that-probably-the-most-important-thing-about-our-education/)

[Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

> [What we are saying is that we need to consolidate the capacity to lend support. Because, one of the problems that's mentioned with regard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/what-we-are-saying-is-that-we-need-to-consolidate-the-capacity-to/)

[Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

> [I say that why don't we bring all points of view. Sit around a table and discuss this evidence, and produce evidence as it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/i-say-that-why-don-t-we-bring-all-points-of-view-sit-around-a-table/)

[Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

> [As Africans, we need to share common recognition that all of us stand to lose if we fail to transform our continent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/as-africans-we-need-to-share-common-recognition-that-all-of-us-stand/)

[Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

> [I think you're a much happier person if you say 'Even if I get involved in politics, I'm only doing so in order to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/i-think-you-re-a-much-happier-person-if-you-say-even-if-i-get/)

[Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

> [I must say, with regard to Equatorial Guinea, the Government of Equatorial Guinea, as soon as they had arrested these people, sent a delegation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/i-must-say-with-regard-to-equatorial-guinea-the-government-of/)

[Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

> [We are in the process of negotiating an agreement with the United States. We will be negotiating agreements with India and China. We are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/we-are-in-the-process-of-negotiating-an-agreement-with-the-united/)

[Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

> [“Her work sought to challenge all of us critically to reflect on the things we find comfort in believing without question.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/her-work-sought-to-challenge-all-of-us-critically-to-reflect-on-the/)

[Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

> [Of course we run a very open economy, and therefore what happens in the rest of the world, in economic terms, obviously has an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/of-course-we-run-a-very-open-economy-and-therefore-what-happens-in/)

[Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

> [Part of the issue around communal land, which became a matter of controversy, is that we are saying that this land must go back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/part-of-the-issue-around-communal-land-which-became-a-matter-of/)

[Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

> [Historically during the years of the White minority regimes, the State, the national Government held this land in trust for these communities. We said,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/historically-during-the-years-of-the-white-minority-regimes-the-state/)

[Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

> [We want the National Intelligence, we want the Police, we want the Scorpions, any other institutions, the tax people, and so on, the totality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/we-want-the-national-intelligence-we-want-the-police-we-want-the/)

[Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

[Explore all 176 Thabo Mbeki quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/)

## More Areas quotes

> [The very purpose for being in this body, for every one of us, is to live and rejoice in that virgin area, that untouched,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/the-very-purpose-for-being-in-this-body-for-every-one-of-us-is-to/)

[Sri Sri Ravi Shankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/)

> [I am somewhat influenced by the years that I've spent trying to actually get things done, whether it was reforming education in Arkansas or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-am-somewhat-influenced-by-the-years-that-i-ve-spent-trying-to/)

[Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/)

> [The earliest language was body language and, since this language is the language of questions, if we limit the questions, and if we only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-freire/the-earliest-language-was-body-language-and-since-this-language-is/)

[Paulo Freire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-freire/)

> [This ball was so crowded that it took me - a trained professional journalist with vast experience in this area - forty five minutes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/this-ball-was-so-crowded-that-it-took-me-a-trained-professional/)

[Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/)

> [People don't want to believe that technology is broken. Pharmaceuticals, robotics, artificial intelligence, nanotechnology - all these areas where the progress has been a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-thiel/people-don-t-want-to-believe-that-technology-is-broken/)

[Peter Thiel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-thiel/)

> [It's absolutely fun to walk around and have people respect you. When Michael Jackson did Thriller, I was in the park one day, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-ross/it-s-absolutely-fun-to-walk-around-and-have-people-respect-you-when/)

[Rick Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-ross/)

> [Software will get to be somewhat more mature, ah, but it will never be as predictable as most areas of engineering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/software-will-get-to-be-somewhat-more-mature-ah-but-it-will-never-be/)

[Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/)

> [If I were entering adulthood now instead of in the environment of fifty years ago, I would choose a career that kept me in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lindbergh/if-i-were-entering-adulthood-now-instead-of-in-the-environment-of/)

[Charles Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lindbergh/)

> [The discrepancy between what actually happened and the version of what happened provided by sources is an enormous gray area.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-jay-epstein/the-discrepancy-between-what-actually-happened-and-the-version-of/)

[Edward Jay Epstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-jay-epstein/)

> [Louisville is a place with no labels. It’s not the South, it’s not Chicago, and you don’t think of it as you think of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-james/louisville-is-a-place-with-no-labels-it-s-not-the-south-it-s-not/)

[Jim James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-james/)

> [It turns out that this part of the brain is one of the first areas that's attacked by Alzheimer's disease. So we can now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-o-keefe/it-turns-out-that-this-part-of-the-brain-is-one-of-the-first-areas/)

[John O'Keefe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-o-keefe/)

> [Engaging the city around us and ministering to its needs reveal to us the remaining bastions of sin in our lives, the areas we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-chandler/engaging-the-city-around-us-and-ministering-to-its-needs-reveal-to-us/)

[Matt Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-chandler/)

> [I believe it is a mistake to isolate arms control from other areas of policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-a-kissinger/i-believe-it-is-a-mistake-to-isolate-arms-control-from-other-areas-of/)

[Henry A. Kissinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-a-kissinger/)

> [Well, the U.N. Security Council resolution 1973 is very clear. It says all necessary measures to be taken to protect civilians and civilian areas.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-jackson/well-the-u-n-security-council-resolution-1973-is-very-clear-it-says/)

[Mike Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-jackson/)

> [When in one area of the world the standard of living and the size of the middle class increases, it is going to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-lagarde/when-in-one-area-of-the-world-the-standard-of-living-and-the-size-of/)

[Christine Lagarde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-lagarde/)

Browse all 2,612 Areas quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I don't know why women would think they would be underrepresented in that 40 per cent, and I do not know why they think they would be underrepresented in that 60 per cent either. Because, any community that has their traditional leader in the area, one would expect that, among the people, they would want to ensure that this committee, that 60%, is properly representative.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Thabo Mbeki"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/i-don-t-know-why-women-would-think-they-would-be-underrepresented-in/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Areas"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/i-don-t-know-why-women-would-think-they-would-be-underrepresented-in/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fff/thabo-mbeki-2259_areas_i-don-t-know-why-women-would-think-they_3220731.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fff/thabo-mbeki-2259_areas_i-don-t-know-why-women-would-think-they_3220731.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fff/thabo-mbeki-2259_areas_i-don-t-know-why-women-would-think-they_3220731.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I don't know why women would think they would be underrepresented in that 40 per cent, and I do not know why…” — Thabo Mbeki",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Thabo Mbeki",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I don't know why women would...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/i-don-t-know-why-women-would-think-they-would-be-underrepresented-in/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/i-don-t-know-why-women-would-think-they-would-be-underrepresented-in/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
