It's Not in the Chromosomes!
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| Also listed in: E-Pluribus-Unum-United |
The long and sorry history of misogyny is replete with the insistence that the destiny of the human race is determined by each person's sex chromosomes. In part, at least, John McCain has signaled his concurrence with this sad tradition. By picking Sarah Palin, the neophyte governor of Alaska, as his running mate.
America's female citizens, though too long denied the franchise, have been eligible to vote for eighty-eight years and, at least in recent elections, vote more frequently than male citizens. Women voters are accustomed to making their choices on the basis of a candidate's stand on issues of concern to them. The people who voted for Senator Clinton probably did so because they thought she had the right positions and the best qualifications for the Presidency. Her gender was a bonus for some and not a barrier for others. Governor Palin shares Senator Clinton's gender. The similarity and the equivalence end there!
As Ellen R. Malcolm, president of Emily's List, which supports women candidates, summarizes it: "Palin's positions on the issues traditionally pressed by women's groups closely match those of Senator McCain "they both want to overturn Roe V. Wade, they both want to continue the failed economic policies of the Bush administration and they both offer more of the same that has led this country down the wrong path." She adds "McCain clearly sees the power of women voters in this election but has just as clearly failed to support any of the issues that they care about."
Incidentally, both McCain and Palin are likely to make federal judiciary appointments that continue the reactionary tilt begun by Richard Nixon and accelerated by George W. Bush. It is not merely the Supreme Court that is in jeopardy. Every Federal District and Circuit Court has suffered the ravages of reactionary appointments. Our civil liberties and the constitutional order have been under attack for decades. Neither McCain nor Palin will do anything but press on with this assault. As Barack said on Thursday, "Enough!"
Congratulations to Governor Palin, but let us not be taken in. Furthermore, let us have sufficient confidence in the women who are our fellow citizens and the light of our lives to genuinely believe that they will cast their votes on the basis of a candidate's principles and proposals, not merely on the basis of a candidate's chromosomes or mode of attire.
America's female citizens, though too long denied the franchise, have been eligible to vote for eighty-eight years and, at least in recent elections, vote more frequently than male citizens. Women voters are accustomed to making their choices on the basis of a candidate's stand on issues of concern to them. The people who voted for Senator Clinton probably did so because they thought she had the right positions and the best qualifications for the Presidency. Her gender was a bonus for some and not a barrier for others. Governor Palin shares Senator Clinton's gender. The similarity and the equivalence end there!
As Ellen R. Malcolm, president of Emily's List, which supports women candidates, summarizes it: "Palin's positions on the issues traditionally pressed by women's groups closely match those of Senator McCain "they both want to overturn Roe V. Wade, they both want to continue the failed economic policies of the Bush administration and they both offer more of the same that has led this country down the wrong path." She adds "McCain clearly sees the power of women voters in this election but has just as clearly failed to support any of the issues that they care about."
Incidentally, both McCain and Palin are likely to make federal judiciary appointments that continue the reactionary tilt begun by Richard Nixon and accelerated by George W. Bush. It is not merely the Supreme Court that is in jeopardy. Every Federal District and Circuit Court has suffered the ravages of reactionary appointments. Our civil liberties and the constitutional order have been under attack for decades. Neither McCain nor Palin will do anything but press on with this assault. As Barack said on Thursday, "Enough!"
Congratulations to Governor Palin, but let us not be taken in. Furthermore, let us have sufficient confidence in the women who are our fellow citizens and the light of our lives to genuinely believe that they will cast their votes on the basis of a candidate's principles and proposals, not merely on the basis of a candidate's chromosomes or mode of attire.
