Since the Christchurch mosques shooting, Jacinda Ardern has become a global phenomenon. On Friday, a photo of the 38-year-old New Zealand Prime Minister embracing a survivor of the Christchurch mosques shooting was projected onto the side of the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in Dubai. Emirati blogger Sultan al-Qassemi wrote that Ardern had become probably the most popular woman in the Middle East, her image and words shared widely by Muslims and non-Muslims alike.
Given widespread despair just about everywhere on the state of current politics, it’s hardly a surprise her has resonated. One Indian colleague told friends on Facebook she should be “president of the world”. “America deserves a leader as good as Jacinda Ardern,” proclaimed the New York Times, particularly struck by the speed with which New Zealand moved to impose new gun laws. The Washington Post said she made Donald Trump’s “empathy gap look like a canyon”.
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