As days turn into weeks post democratic primary and the exit of Hillary Rodham Clinton, many may have noticed that the political landscape is simply not as bright or compelling to each of us. As Hillary graciously exited the race (read > eventually capitulated to the relentless pressure from all sides to drop-out), so too went the passion and sizzle in this election and our political process by the people. We knew this day would come and even prepared for it, because for months on end the “innocent” media had “miraculously” foretold the “demise of her campaign” and irresponsibly and unconscionably interfered and influenced the natural process of our election by calling for her to quit. But we should all be careful what we wish for. Now, without Hillary to beat up and attack, the media has lost its victim and, therefore, its “story,” and the 2008 election has suddenly lost its luster and allure. Not only was it riveting that a viable female candidate was actually a “contender” in national politics, the neck and neck battle Hillary waged against Obama was just plain good entertainment that engaged us all. We love a good fight, and God could she hold her in own! Sadly in the weeks that have followed, the media has been hard pressed to excite us anymore. They can’t attack Hillary so they simply spend their time on “postmortems” of her campaign and --now sing her glory— because like a “good little woman,” she finally backed down and did as she was told. If anything Hillary always made for a good story. The press hated the Hillary that “could have won,” but in her defeat she is now a saint. So no matter how great it is to have the first African-American candidate running for president, it’s just not as interesting with the ”untouchable favorite ” who can do no wrong in the media’s eyes. And let’s just face it, it’s not as interesting without the woman in the race—especially THAT woman.
Disenfranchised Women—yet againWorse, the departure of Hillary, has actually left women in this country “disenfranchised.” When Hillary went (or was forced out at gun point), her largest electorate or “core group” was left without a candidate. Without a candidate to support, women are once again relegated back to spectators in the U.S. political process, harkening back to a nineteenth-century America—-a time when women were “muted” and had no voice in the political dialogue. Similarly, today we are also left standing, mute with our arms in the air looking around for someone or something to believe in, yet finding no place to go, and nobody we can get behind that actually cares about US and our issues. By election default, we have been excluded from the process—yet again.
Women as a Core Group—to the Highest BidderHmm. . . well. . .they say they care about us. Women and female Hillary supporters are supposed to believe that the Republican Party and McCain suddenly care about women—a group that has historically oppressed women. The Obama people say they too care about us —the same people that stood idly by and did nothing as the press eviscerated and excoriated Hillary on a daily basis making her a political punch line with a barrage of sexist commentary to go with our morning coffee. Oh yes, they want us now. Suddenly we “matter.” We women are just supposed to forget about the first viable female candidate that mattered to us. We are just supposed to forget how hard it was to get ‘her’ here, what it might have meant for our futures if she had made it, and now throw our support behind—oh, you know—any of the men still left in the race. How convenient. Furthermore, what are we to glean from this nonsense? Not only are we, women, as a group disloyal and fickle—our support swaying with whichever way the wind blows—we are also easily manipulated and completely complicit in our own exploitation by male politicians.
Quick ladies throw your support around the guy who has voted 11 times for anti-choice legislation, including legislation that wouldn’t protect women even in times of health risks. Or better yet, throw your support around this guy over here, the young upstart male who stole a primary election from an older more experienced female, called a professional reporter “sweetie”, and refuses to take a stand at all on abortion by voting only ‘present’ on pro-choic legislation (yet continues to masquerade as a pro-choice candidate).
Men Decree Women Will Fall Back In LineMost importantly, the DNC SUDDENLY CARES! After the primary election was over Dean finally pulled his head out of the sand and chastised the media about the sexist coverage. As usual, far too little and far too late. Now the Democratic Party wants us to make “nice” and vote “the ticket.” Suddenly, after hearing only the “just bow out” mantra for months on end, the Democratic Party has now changed its tune, and now all we hear is “party unity..yada yada yada.” The Democratic Party threw its largest and most loyal members, Democrat Women, “under the bus,” and now we are expected, even told like school children, to get back in line. Political icons such as George Will and Dick Morris have actually declared it and decreed it: “well come November, the anger and resentment will die down [again women are silly and fickle like that], and of course because of the threat to Roe all ‘naughty’ feminists and ‘good’ little women will fall back in line.”
In this way, we are told by the male commentariat that if we don’t simply become “good little women,” and do as we are told by voting the ticket, we are then threatened or manipulated into “playing ball” by using our very core issues against us. Vote the ticket or else. . . I don’t know about you, but as a former member of the Democratic Party (in the process of changing my party registration), as a Hillary Clinton supporter and as a woman, quite frankly, I’m sick and tired of men all around us telling us what we think, and what we will and should do.
Women Get the Consolation Prize—Lessons from a Sexist MediaHowever, on our way out the door women were given ‘parting gifts’ and told “thanks for playing with the big boys in the ‘men only count and control everything’ US political game. We are reminded that Hillary’s core group—WOMEN-- is now ‘for sale’ to the highest bidder and we are even expected to be mollified by post-mortem ‘op-ed’ pieces –strategically written and lead by women—which both simultaneously eulogize the greatness of Hillary Clinton and all she ‘achieved’ while indirectly putting closure on what WOMEN didn’t achieve—once again. Think of pieces like ‘What Hillary Won” by Gail Collins or the Hillary Clinton ‘round-up’ theater show on CNN—where their ‘objective’ news team did a ‘look back’ at what she WAS. These were ‘lesson’ pieces, designed by THE very powers that be, who also held a decisive hand in her downfall, to TELL US WOMEN not only what to think about this election, but also to shape what we we’re supposed to have learned and now to guide us on how women should go forward. They instruct us that that not only weren’t they the bad guys after all, but that there is always NEXT TIME (so don’t give up hope ladies) and even though we didn’t win, it was still a very, ‘powerful moment in history’ for the weaker sex. How many powerful moments like this have we had over the last century? So although women may not have ‘won’ the white house, we did have yet another ‘powerful moment’ and look, by golly, at what we did win: Hillary paved the way for the next female presidential candidate to be degraded in the media for 18 long months before being stabbed in the back by her party and shoved out the door!’
So what did women really learn? The REAL take-away from this election is that Hillary’s campaign –the first viable female presidential candidacy-- was over before it ever started, that as Gloria Steinem foreshadowed at the start of this election, “women are NEVER frontrunners,” and that even though ironically, prior to this 2008 election women actually did have faint hope that we would get THERE eventually, we have now come to terms post 2008, that we may never WIN the presidency. And if we EVER try again how seemingly insurmountable the odds are that we’re up against.
So female Hillary Clinton supporters need to ask themselves if they want the consolation prize. Do they want to forget about their political hopes and aspirations and tow the party line—literally—or do they want to say ‘I’m not your good little woman’ or your ‘good little democrat’ anymore? Do they want to ‘make nice’ and be complicit in a system that EXCLUDES them and then uses them, or do they want to stand up and say, ‘I’m not for sale?’ Do women want to make REAL change for women’s rights or do they want to continue the status quo? If we ‘get back in line’ not only do we endorse and sanction every ‘wrong’ committed against Hillary Clinton and therefore womankind during this horribly sexist and corrupt primary election, we also lose our opportunity to for once take our ‘powerful moment’ and turn it into a powerful momentum for real and lasting change tomorrow. Women owe it to our daughter’s to say, ‘I’m not ready to make nice!’