Pakistani entrepreneur 'uneasy' about inclusion in Ivanka Trump's new book

Book also features quotes from personalities who have been outspoken critics of Donald Trump

US First Daughter Ivanka Trump published on Wednesday a self-help book for working women filled with inspirational quotes and anecdotes from entrepreneurs, authors and activists. But not everyone featured in the book is comfortable about being quoted, The New York Times reported.

Among those quoted in "Women Who Work: Rewriting the Rules for Success" is Pakistani entrepreneur Umber Ahmad. Ahmad, who spent a decade on Wall Street before setting up her own bakery, is quoted in the book as an example of women who succeed by following their passions.

However, Ahmad wasn't too optimistic about Ivanka's involvement in her father's presidency.  Talking to The New York Times, Ahmad said, "The only test is whether she [Ivanka] is able to achieve something other than personal gain."

Another woman is Reshma Saujani, founder and CEO of nonprofit Women Who Code. Saujani called out Ivanka on her Twitter account, telling her not to feature her work unless she is "going to stop being complicit."

.@ivankatrump don't use my story in #WomenWhoWork unless you are going to stop being #complicit #askivanka

— Reshma Saujani (@reshmasaujani) May 2, 2017

Ivanka's new book "Women Who Work" comes out as Donald plans to end the "Let Girls Learn" initiative.

Empowerment for me but not for thee.

— George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) May 2, 2017

Many people quoted in Ivanka's new book have been outspoken critics of her father, US President Donald Trump.

Anne-Maria Slaughter's work has been extensively quoted in the book. Slaughter is a political scientist and was a Hillary Clinton supporter in the 2016 elections. She has called Donald Trump 'toxic' and is well known for her article "Why Women Still Can't Have It All", which covers issues women face in the workplace.

Actress Cynthia Nixon, also quoted in the book, has said Trump's presidency makes her "scared for her daughter."

Others who have opposed Donald Trump are also mentioned in the book, including Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, New York Times columnist David Brooks, Mark Zuckerburg, Richard Branson and Sheryl Sandberg, reported Business Insider.



The millionaire mother of three, assistant to the president and wife of White House adviser Jared Kushner, says she wrote the tome, published by Penguin business imprint Portfolio, before her father's shock victory, AFP reported.

Ivanka is now an unpaid federal employee, with an office in the West Wing, and fulfills duties traditionally carried out by a first lady.

The purpose of the book, she writes, is to empower others with skills she has learned in matters as diverse as starting companies, negotiating, maximising your influence at work and "helping change the system to make it better for women."

Yet, the book spotlights the gulf between the gilded world of a 35-year-old woman thought -- with her husband -- to still hold investments worth up to $740 million and the struggles facing middle- or working-class working women.

Fatima Goss Graves, incoming president of the National Women's Law Center that promotes equality for women and families, wrote in US News that the book was "completely out of touch with the obstacles working women face."

"Millions of women are in no position to follow any of this advice."

The New York Times, a newspaper repeatedly criticised by the Republican president, called it "not really offensive so much as witlessly derivative." The "why of her book becomes easy to discern. She's extending the Trump brand."

Online booksellers Amazon listed the book with an average of three out of five stars, an instant bestseller in the category of "job hunting and careers."



Alongside glowing reviews extolling her as a role model with practical advice, irate comments criticised her as a woman of privilege who never had to work.

Ivanka was pre-paid an advance for the book, but has tried to fend off concerns that she is profiting from public office by promising to donate further profits to charity and announcing that she would not go on a promotional tour.

"In light of government ethics rules, I want to be clear that this book is a personal project. I wrote it at a different time in my life," she wrote on Facebook.

The book closes with her often-stated desire for the US to enshrine paid leave and affordable high-quality childcare, but offers no concrete blueprint on how that might be achieved.

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