Let us Not Blame Hillary
November 20, 2008
by Artemis March PhD
|This notion I’m hearing that Hillary should have taken on her Party and perhaps lead an independent movement—please, get a grip. It’s just not who she is. We need to see and respect that. We aren’t serving our long-term interests when we do what women too often do with women leaders: project an unrealistic image, feel personally betrayed when she doesn’t meet our standard—a standard we don’t impose on men—and tear her down.
I don’t think Hillary has ever seen herself as a movement leader. Not an MLK but more like LBJ, the insider who can get the nuts and bolts in place so that the outsiders’ dreams may become a reality. She has relied on her mastery of interdependent issues and coalition-building skills to gain respect—never trusting charisma or that she even had it. At the convention, she tried to get people to focus on the policies, not on her. It took Marcia Pappas to speak a truth I think Hillary never quite dared believe for herself: “I was in it for you, Hillary. It was about you.”
Besides, no one has ever been elected as an independent, not even Teddy Roosevelt who’d already done well in the top job. Like it or not, a woman candidate needs the backing and the infrastruc¬ture of one of those wings of the corporate party. If Hillary had ever entertained the notion that this grass-roots movement was going to carry her—well, more than a few peeled off and some say never again. Very precarious being Hillary. Very precarious being a woman in her position.
When die-hard supporters write about feeling betrayed by Hillary’s campaigning too hard for him, I think, oh, no, here we go again. The endless meetings we endured during the early 70s to deal with the “horizontal hostility” that we didn’t really understand or know how to handle—and still don’t. It’s so huge and so deeply ingrained. As women, we direct our aggression toward the safer target: other women. Even women who were abused often blame the mother who didn’t (or couldn’t) protect her, more than the father, stepfather, or boyfriend. That women disidentify with the caste of women, are divided from each other, and direct our anger toward one other is the make-or-break territory for feminism—and arguably the biggest barrier to electing a woman president.
Yet none of these pragmatics captures my global response to these latest attacks on Hillary. The Right’s hatred and projections are predictable. The male-identified faux-feminists and the misogynist males of the Left who sank Hillary have shown their true colors this season. But when some of the faithful lose faith, it dredges up an ache in my soul. All that we have endured for five millennia merges with the spectre of this new movement (to which Hillary’s candidacy has given birth) crashing once again on the rocks of women’s internalized oppression. Our Warrior Queen was checkmated. Will her child slip away as well?
Yes, I know how awful it was for each of us to see her campaigning so long and hard for him (as she always said she would), but how much more dreadful for her to go through this!! Knowing about the caucus fraud, knowing that the Party to which she was ever faithful never had her back, experiencing betrayal after betrayal from those whose careers she and Bill had made or had propped up—knowing all this and much more, she soldiered on with grace the likes of which I have rarely seen.
Her June speeches (and even her convention speech) gloriously buoyed us up while masterfully never conceding or endorsing him. I thought at the time, thank you, thank you for giving us this. You knew we couldn’t stand that right now. You kept faith with us. I wrote a piece that it was not Hillary’s job to unite the Party or win it for the loser, but I knew that if he lost, she would be toast. Scapegoating women is how men evade responsibility and justify their power.
How did she stomach what she felt she had to do—for her future, for our future, and in all probability, because of all kinds of threats? I think her choices were made for what she sees as the greater good of this country in these perilous times as well as for her own political viability. Do we really want to tear that down? Men (except those in ideological movements) don’t do that to each other. Shall we, who don’t have all the pieces, second-guess her?
Perhaps most galling of all, her post-primary choices mean that, although her campaign did lodge complaints about caucus fraud, she is not able to speak the truth about the primaries publicly. Nor, as I have written elsewhere, can she tackle the misogyny on her own because she needs a Greek Chorus to amplify, interpret, and spin with, for, and about her. Holding that silence is way beyond what most, and probably all, of us truth-tellers could handle.
Hillary doesn’t have the luxury that we do to be the principled outsiders naming the truth about the underside of her opponent’s campaign—the “real campaign.” It is vital that we all be the voice that she cannot speak. We must build a truth-based narrative about her, and replace the false dominant narrative about what happened during this campaign. A tall order, but essential to her future, the future of other women candidates, and our own.
Let us not turn our pain, disappointment, anger, despair, and heartache into attacking this extraordinary woman for the choices she made because they don’t fit our outsiders’ fantasy. Let us not participate in the scapegoating of female candidates—the behavior we have taken such exception to when done by others. Let us not do what women under patriarchy have done for their survival and crumbs for centuries—turn their anger horizontally rather than vertically—which keeps us divided and subordinated.
Let us train our fire where it belongs: the misogynist behavior of her abusive opponent, her Party, and the media, and the androcentric socio-political system which places women in impossible situations and pits them against each other. Patriarchy thrives on divisions it foments among women. Let us not fall prey to that. Let us catch ourselves when we fall into it, and do the hard work to stop it so that we don’t self-destruct as the Second and Third Waves did.
© 2008 by Artemis March, PhD
# # #
elsewhere reference:
“Sarah Palin: A Rorschach for Feminsts” on The New Agenda
“Sarah Palin: A Rorschach for Feminsts” on No Quarter
I understand what you’re saying, but I ventured out to hear Hillary speak in support of Barack Obama just before the election. Sitting in the stands listening to her brought back memories of sitting across the kitchen table from a dear friend who had two black eyes and her arm in a sling. She was trying to convince me that her husband was really a good man – that he took care of her and his children very well. The side of him that got angry and beat her up was more than outweighed by the good things he did. Although I still supported her, I could not agree with her that her husband deserved my support and respect as well. I offered my help for her to leave her situation, but she refused.
I feel the same way about Hillary and Obama. It’s an abusive relationship. Hillary has not spoken out against it because for some reason she believes that more good will come out of staying on his side. We’re here for her if she would leave the abuse, but she won’t. I can’t celebrate her decision. My anger is directed at the abuser, but I feel sorrow that Hillary is enabling him.
She is a stronger woman than I ever gave her credit for and much as I have disliked her stand on many issues, I don’t think we have seen the full measure of her mettle yet . She just now is emerging from the crucible of the election and the primaries marked by unparalleled thuggery and misogyny and I think she has more ‘iron in the backbone’ than ever before. Of course she toed the political line like any good soldier would. Maybe she cheered for him a bit too much, I don’t know. The refrain of her being a sore loser, having a hissy fit and pouting would have been long and loud and brought out ever more visceral misogyny had she given him in turn what he gave her. It would have damaged her Party too and I will give her credit for remaining loyal to the fundamentals of the DNC.
“Nor…can she tackle the misogyny on her own because she needs a Greek Chorus to amplify, interpret, and spin with, for, and about her. Holding that silence is way beyond what most, and probably all, of us truth-tellers could handle…”
Testify.
Thank you, Dr. March. This needed to be said.
It’s one thing for us to take a principled stand and make a protest vote so as not to reward the faction of the DNC that hijacked the primary, but for Hillary to have done so would’ve backfired since she not only would not have had a Greek Chorus backing her up, but she would’ve been hounded by media furies, so the issue wouldn’t have been about the fraud, anyway.
Thank you for this incredibly toughtful and thought-provoking piece.
This election season, like so many others, I’ve been thinking about Clinton and women’s treatment of other women. I think this piece has raised a multitude of extremely important points about these issues.
Samanthasmom also raises issues that touch me, as well. It appeared that many of us related to Hillary Clinton’s candidacy on numerous levels: some deeply personal, some symbolic and so forth. It seems Clinton’s candidacy both inspired many of us and also, ultimately, deeply disappointed us, as well. However, as this piece so beautifully points out, the disappointment stems from a need or expectation for Clinton to be something other than who she is, something other than anything we would expect from a man, and so forth. For me, in essence, I wanted her to be Superwoman, rather than flawed and simply human (something she does in a rather extraordinary way!). I wanted her to be our nominee AND a symbol of the women’s movement AND someone willing to speak truth to power to the point of risking her political career AND be an activist AND…It would have been nice, even if few public figures manage such a feat. But I wanted her to do it, even though it’s not her history nor what she signed on for. I wanted her to be super extraordinary, have no limits, take all risks, and do so as a lone voice, if needed.
Yet, all of that said, I still in both world: that of this piece and that of samanthasmom. Only time will tell how I will manage to integrate it all.
Finally, since the subject of women’s treatment of other women has also been raised, I would like to note that I’ve seen some distressing threads and posts on various blogs that suggest that women should not “bash” or “tear down” each other. This goes without saying. But, somewhere between those extremes and nothing, is a world of thought and discourse that I hope we will not disallow for fear that we are not always supporting each other. I, for one, would hate to see some falsely created context in which women feel they must operate whereby we dare not challenge or disagree with one another. If that is the case, then we will simply have managed to play into the age-old trap of dichotomies we struggle with, such as virgin/whore, etc.
I hope that as we travel this journey we can find ways to take each other seriously, not create dichotomies, not romantacize or glorify another woman siimply because she is female, not raise up as great some who we dare not question (such as Clinton) while feeling free to “bash” others we like not-so-much (such as Pelosi).
This isn’t easy. But pieces like the one posted on this thread surely help to energize the discussion in a way I greatly appreciate!
Thank you!
I think you’ve hit on something really essential about Hillary… she does not crave admiration; rather, she works to earn your respect. I think she’s entirely self-motivated, meaning, she does things because she thinks they are the right thing to do, not because she wants the approval of others.
I don’t blame Hillary for anything; she did, and continues to do her best and sticks to her principles.
I wish we had a hundred, a thousand, a million Hillaries.
I believe one can be a “die-hard” supporter of Hillary Clinton and still not agree with something she has done. The two are not mutually exclusive.
Wasn’t the intolerance of any constructive criticism of “the one” something Hillary supporters found disturbing in the Obama cult followers.
Robin – Great point.
Thank you, Artemis March, for identifying the “make or break territory for feminism” and samanthasmom for a poignant analogy.
Thank you, Artemis, for so eloquently writing what I don’t have the talent to write. Wouldn’t it be tragic if the women who supported Hillary ended up blaming her for supporting the winning Democratic candidate, when the mainstream left was setting her up to be blamed if he lost?
Isn’t that so typical of women who seek any sort of power, whether it be in the boardroom or in their own homes. They have to be willing to shoulder all the blame no matter what happens.
It is so terribly hard not to wallow in discouragement after the betrayal from the left–the sucker punch that none of us were expecting.
What can we learn from Hillary’s grace and courage? Is it that if you want a place at the table, and your happen to be packing a pair of ovaries, you better have skin thicker than any rhino, because you will need it, sister. And the message that sends our daughters–don’t even think about it, if you can’t handle the worst of the worst thrown at you.
How many bright capable women who may not have that thick of skin have excluded themselves from seeking to serve? One can only imagine what we have lost, it could take decades to recover from the damage that was inflicted by the left, who seem to have stolen the right’s playbook and has decided to run with it.
Hillary is a very strong person. She is a good person. Everything she has done during the election and after verifies that. She is an example and source of strength for us all. I support and respect her fully.
Wow, bravo! I’ve been struggling with this issue myself. I wasn’t so upset with her for supporting him after the primary–I expected that–but to never speak a word about it, even after the election? It being the misogyny and sexism.
Even though your essay is very effective and persuasive (you really did a bang up job of being fair to everyone and explaining the underlying dynamic), I still think it’s possible to be critical of her choices this year. What I’ve had to do is to consciously divide my anger and frustration from my rational understanding, and address them as separate issues.
The way I see it, Hillary Clinton is still the best choice for a political leader at this time. She comes with all the right skills and, just as importantly, the right values to address the issues. But I also wish she had made some different choices, and there is precedent in her life for an expectation of more. Her graduation speech from Wellesly and her United Nations speech on women both suggest that she would be the kind of leader that directly speaks truth to power. She did not do that in this campaign.
There was no “right-wing conspiracy” moment, which admittedly would have ended her campaign, but even that would have been a better outcome than what we have. Here’s what happened in the wake of her so-called media gaffe in saying her husband was being attacked by a vast right-wing conspiracy: Democrats mapped it. They mapped that conspiracy and took it around the country on a traveling road show with a simple power point presentation, and that changed a lot of minds. Now a lot of people know there IS (or was) a vast right-wing conspiracy–and that knowledge was part of this election. Organizing against it helped Dems win big this year. I can’t help but ask where we’d be today if she had done something like that with the sexism we saw running rampant all year, and which continues unabated and unchecked.
But again, the bottom line is that her skills and her values are such that she deserves our loyalty and I would support her in whatever she chose to do.
Forgot to say, I couldn’t agree more with the need to correct those false narratives about her by creating truthful narratives. We’ve got to counter that. Part of the reason Clinton Derangement Syndrome worked so effectively is because no one ever corrected the narratives from the 90s, so a bunch of kids who grew up in the 90s helped create a unique faction within the Democrats ranks. That faction drove the narratives during the primary. If they’d have had a different opinion based a realistic picture, CDS might never have even existed.
FOX News is saying she will be offered the SOS position after Thanksgiving. It’s a free country and she can do what she wants. Yes, she would be as good as any SOS we’ve had but she doesn’t have the final say on Policy and she will never be in the real inner sanctum with Obama. She loses the clout she would have as a US Senator and she must stay in the good graces of Obama at all times or be undercut, and that can happen. The Middle East is nothing but an ongoing nightmare, the world’s economy is really faltering, we are faced with extremely aggressive economies in China and India and we have 2 wars going. The forecast for a stellar career as SOS is dim at best. Former SOSs are not on the front pages of history books, lets face it. I don’t see how this move in any way facilitates aspirations for another run at the Presidency. Obama may well flame out in 4 years and she goes down with the ship. It is quite a risk in my meager opinion.
goesh, I think no matter what Hillary does, she has earned a couple of pages in history books. I think we need to support her, and the contributions she will try to make as Secretary of State. I think it’s possible that this position will be more beneficial for her if she does want to run for President again. It will give her more gravitas internationally than being a junior senator. I think symbolically, it’s a more powerful position than a senator, and that’s a good thing.
And it’s okay if she fails. We just need women representing, no matter what, to make people used to the fact that women don’t have to be perfect to be in office or to be in power. Perhaps she enjoys traveling, and being a diplomat, and perhaps this job would bring her great personal satisfaction.
Brava for an excellent essay.
I believe Hillary is motivated by the desire to “bloom where planted.” She has always been the type of person to work with anyone, to put up with anything, in order to further her agenda. She even met with Richard Mellon Scaife, the orchestrator of the VRWC – and utterly charmed him.
I must say that I strongly object to the use of the word “abuse” to describe Obama’s relationship to Hillary. The word is far too loaded and sets Hillary up to be seen as a victim, and to be judged for staying in the “relationship.”
I have news for you. She is going to be working with Obama NO MATTER WHAT. She is a Democrat. He will be the Democratic POTUS. There is no option for her to free herself from him except for her to quit the government entirely. Is that what people really want?
Hillary is not a victim, she is a fighter. Just because she may not be fighting the way YOU think she should does not mean she is not doing what she thinks is best.
I say, critique her if you will, but leave the word “abuse” out of it.
This piece is a perfect example of why I love this organization.
goesh – I agree with your perspective about the position of SoS. Historically, those in the SoS role don’t make history. They play more of an ambassador-like role. Only a few (Kissinger comes to mind), for better or for worse, do make history. But, for the most part I see the role as far less powerful than a Senator, or Senate majority leader, and certainly less independent.
Well said…I’m cautiously optimistic about this and certainly don’t blame her for anything, she is doing what she can to stay in the public eye and do some good for America, which is what she has always done. Trying to sabotage Obama, even if it may have been temporarily satisfying for her, would have been extremely counter-productive in the long run. Even if she did create a third party she would only split the vote and help to keep the republicans in the WH for a long time,
I think she will do a great job as secretary of state, she is as smart as Kissenger but luckily a little less ruthless but still she will stand up to the Arabs and the Russians and help to defend Israel from the constant aggression of its neighbors and hopefully do something about misogyny (particularly in islamic countries) on a global scale. These are all issues I care about deeply and I think she is the best person for the job.
My only concern is that Obama will try to screw her like Bush did to Powell but I hope she will protect herself against that. I don’t trust Obama at all.
Here I go being cranky again, but why do we have to see the word “blame” in the same header with “Hillary”?
Why can’t the header be something POSITIVE like, “Let’s give Hillary credit”
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“SHADOW” now . . . and “SHADOW” forever!
“Stop Humiliation And Disparagement Of Women”
While I agree with much of the post, I really feel our “movement”
needs a unifying figurehead, someone to rally behind. I WANTED it to be Hillary because she inspired so many to “follow” her.
Could we find a nonpartisan to do this? Isn’t it asking a lot of one person to do it? To carry the “abuse” on their shoulders?
Yes, it is asking a lot but like Ghandi did in India and even what Rosa Parks did on that bus- a galvanizing figure WORKS!
There are so many other examples.
We seem to be hard-wired to follow someone who inspires us.
Who could that figurehead be? Any volunteers?
Isn’t there room for both of these fantastic women – warts and all? I do not know about the behind-the-scenes maneuvers mentioned, but my guess is that it’s the nature of the beast. Our media has put politicians on high alert until the last ounce of blood is sucked out of them. I believe that one day Hillary may wake up and regret her decision when she recognizes how she held democracy in the palm of her hand and squandered it. Her decision comes with a price. She will be but a blip in history this presidential election. But her work is far from over. With the pain – there is gain. I believe her greatest achievements are to come.
But all is not lost for us! We are standing up, talking, arguing, voicing our opinions because we care. We are still here-in this together. Apathy is O-V-E-R and that is progress!
Let’s look inside at our inability to forgive Hillary and ask ourselves what about her betrayal (choice) reminds me of my own failings or betrayals? Surely we have all made decisions and acted in a self-serving manner at times? Have we sat in a room full of men and women telling dumb blonde jokes and sat silent? Have we experienced oppression and kept quiet? Heck, look no further than traffic in DC to find no one lets you in and many cut you off without even so much as a thank you wave!
My point is self-preservation Hillary-style – meant looking out for # 1- Her career. Her reputation. Her future in politics. Men do it every day and we accept it. Why him and not her? Or ourselves? Hillary is no more wrong than he is or we are. In fact, if we peel the layers maybe we are angry at her because she acted in a way unlike a typical women or at least how we were taught women should behave. She didn’t sacrifice her career for us! What the heck?
Just as she gave us a whole new definition of womanhood under fire during the primaries-God I loved her tireless determination not to quit – she also contradicted another social norm – that women are EXPECTED to sacrifice themselves over and over and over again. For their husbands. Their children. Their siblings and parents. Everyone. Hill sacrificed herself for Bill once. This time she looked out for # 1 – Hillary. She left Bill to lick his wounds.
SO? Shoot, it stinks but who are we to hang our progress on one woman? That’s not fair. We can’t expect her to do it when we can’t do it for ourselves. Palin said she was a feminist and then backed away from it following advice from McCain’s campaign. Did that change my opinion or support? Hell no! Her actions spoke volumes and I loved her for it!
And I love Hillary for it – warts and all. Because when I look back to all the wonderful discussions with people I met – the doors canvassed in towns where I knew strangers better than my own neighbors- hooting and hollering for every last honk along the roadway for our girl – chanting cheers and listening intently to her every last word in those final speeches – becoming a PUMA -voting for Palin proudly – I wouldn’t trade this experience. And I do credit all of the smiles and tears, disappointment and elation to Hill.
I am now more painfully sensitive to sexism and misogyny and determined to speak out in defiance of the status quo. I am in a completely different place than one year ago. I have new friends, I don’t hate republicans. I don’t belong to the democrats. It is liberating. I haven’t felt that alive as a feminist in years. I still wear my Hillary button as a symbol of solidarity. I’d wear a Sarah if I had one. We lived through history – just or unjust this year. But I will not let others forget her or her supporters. She became my hero because of the growth that her candidacy inspired in me. What did she cultivate in you?
I’m starting to feel like we need to move beyond Hillary. What we’re trying to take on is huge, it’s systemic and long-standing. At this point, I feel like the sooner we can expand our vision to the countless other great women out there, in government and other places of leadership, the better. Hillary is certainly right up there and clearly we cherish her in many ways. But, it’s time to move on and move forward beyond Clinton. Let’s look at the Marion Edelman’s of the world, or our great writers, outstanding teachers, doctors, the young women who win science competitions….it goes on and on, as we work to expand it ever further.
Okay…you convinced me. I’ll do it! I”m used to abuse already!
It would be easier if we can do a group of figureheads. Any other volunteers? Common, everyday women figureheads from a variety of backgrounds would be inspiring. You’d just have to be willing to go public, consistently, long term.
I’m half serious about volunteering myself, mostly because I feel like, who the heck am I to be a figurehead, but I totally like the idea of a group of regular women being the face and voice of this group.
Young, old, different shades, different upbringings, parties, different in so many ways, yet united with one purpose…respect and support of female advancement.
Anne-Marie,
I like that idea a lot. We would have a difficult time picking one figurehead but a group of truly diverse women would be a great tone to set.
I’d join your effort Anne-Marie. But how do we do it? How do we get in the limelight? The best idea I have is a modern Silent Sentinels movement, but I can’t afford to take off and directly petition the white house like that. Plus, we need a focues list of demands for that. There’s got to be something more practical…
Anna Belle and Cynthia, I would like to hear bluelady say what she envisions a figurehead to be doing, since she brought this up. Ghandi and Parks showed courage in the face of adversity.
I think the least a figurehead group ought to do is speak the truth and ask difficult questions: Ask the public, the media, politicians, why not 50% representation, NOW? What are we waiting for? Why is not Obama choosing 50% women for his cabinet? Should political leaders ignore hateful speech and actions towards their opponent if it helps them? Is there not an ultimate responsibility to promote dignity and good sportsmanship in politics, which is more important than winning?
I think a figurehead group can inspire by taking positive actions that are sincere and show love towards women and all people. They would always connect the dots for people of how equality and fair treatment of women make society as a whole better, using science, and examples from real life, from history and from other countries.
I work for a city agency that sent a broadcast email message asking people to submit artwork for an exhibit for Black History Month. I wrote to the organizer, expressed my enthusiasm for this exhibit and asked whether such an exhibit is planned for Women’s History month. She wrote back: “As a matter of fact, we used to have a Women’s History Month exhibit immediately after the BHM
Show, but it got too hard to handle logistically, so we stopped doing Women’s History.” Ouch. That hurt. It was too hard, so we stopped. In other words, we didn’t think it was worth the effort.
I wrote back offering my services with logistics if they will reconsider, and recommended that they have a Women’s Art Show at a less busy time of year…
So perhaps a figurehead group can address such slights publicly. When a women’s history art show is dropped, when a girls sports team funding cut in favor of a boys’ team, when a financial or educational institution continues to deny advancement opportunities to female employees, all such things can be called out publicly by our group. Or when females are promoted or valued, our group can draw attention to that, and reward the organization or company doing it with good publicity. Along the same line, we can have a monthly recitation or public recognition, an honor roll, where we publicly acknowledge women from all walks of life who have made a positive difference, or women who have attained a significant advancement in their arena.
Maybe we can make ourselves available as a group for news interviews. We can book speeches at colleges, high schools, girl scout groups, women’s groups, and tell our story and our purpose. And always with a focus on the positive.
I personally would want to ask people to treat themselves and their enemies with dignity, respect, and tolerance. I would give examples of how hate speech and dehumanization of people has led to atrocious acts throughout history. I would ask people to accept each other’s differences and strive to see the common ground.
How about you, what would inspire you?
I think you nailed it Anne-Marie when you said of Ghandi and Rosa Parks:” showed courage in the face of adversity.” How that person got to be a figurehead is probably a combination of fate and an I’m-not-going-to-take-it-any-more mindset and the actions they decided to do.
For the women’s movement, there’s the women who lead by example of their accomplishments, like Clinton and Palin- and who I’d like to see but haven’t found yet- the woman who stands up to the media and culture bias and is the face of that resistance.
(Without pushback to the media bias, the accomplished women politicians get trashed. )
A group could easily be the figurehead for that resistance, and maybe it’s the people in New Agenda who will fulfill that role.
I still hope for an already famous person to lend their face to the movement- or maybe that woman is even now hiding in obscurity and fate will propel her to the fore.
Someone who “calls” the media on their bias and leads the resistance by example- that’s what would inspire me.
Of course, that’s just my 2 cents.
Yes, Anne-Marie, I agree about the positive focus. No movement in recent history has gotten momentum or achieved progress by vilifying the people who allowed the system, the common people, rather they achieved all they did by focusing on the people actually in power. And they also pointed to themselves as examples, and tried to get a lot of people in their group to model in the same way. This is what non-violent protest and all those parades of well-dressed people are all about. Even the suffragettes did it with their white dresses and such.
So I like the idea of a positive frame. The way I see, someone is going to have the take the risk of getting off the couch and out from behind the keyboard. Everyone is afraid to do it alone. Look what happened to Hillary and Sarah–it takes a lot of courage to take that risk. There are things that could be done right now. NYC is filled with disaffected Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin supporters, and most of the televised media is located right there. MSNBC is, for instance, I believe. Why aren’t women coming together from across the spectrum to spend a few hours outside their offices? They might Have to stand there every night for a few weeks during the two hours Tweety and Olbermann are on, but they couldn’t be ignored forever. I live in Indiana or I’d already be there starting that.
Likewise a group of committed people could be standing outside of Obama’s house in Chicago, or his HQs there. They could be quietly holding up signs and asking questions about women in the Obama administration. A couple of weeks of this would be enough to make some kind of progress. He couldn’t suffer that forever, and the media would eventually pick it up. I live five hours away, and I’d be willing to commit any Wednesday or Friday there if others were to join me.
I wonder if there is a religious leader that we can talk into joining us? Someone prominent within one of the more liberal faiths, such as UCC? While I’m not religious in the least and hold no beliefs on the supernatural, I do understand that these other leaders instilled a faith component in their movements that helped shield them somewhat from criticism and gave those movements a sort of cultural respectability. It is past time for women to be speaking out from the pulpit.
Anna Belle, I am ready to get out from behind the keyboard! I really am. I expect we’ll be taking action soon. I think the founders of TNA are working on organizing us all over the country. I volunteered to be a Team Captain.
As for figureheads, I think one will emerge…it will be someone or some people who do the work we’re trying to do passionately, consistently and successfully. I don’t think we can pick one now.
One of the reasons I am here today, part of this group, and wanting to be an agent for change is because I was so saddened by the hate, vitriol and anger directed at Hillary and Sarah. So I hope that whatever we do at the New Agenda we will do always keeping in mind that we need to model the behavior we want to see: tolerance, respect, peace, kindness, encouragement. Do you all think that will work?
I don’t blame Hillary. She is who she is. I will say that I now know who she is. She is a party player, more interested in group membership than in fighting for principles. Just as any other politician, she HAS NO principles of her own, other than power. Therefore, she is who she is, and I am who I am. And who I am can’t support who she is.
Me too, Anne-Marie! It seems like a bunch of us with no authority and no access want to, but the ladies in place to do it now because they have that authority and access don’t want to. I’m so frustrated by that. I wish I knew what to do. I don’t blame anyone else for not stepping up, as I said it’s hard, but with so many willing but no way…I just wish I knew what to do with that.
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