[The Times, U.K.]

El Tiempo, Colombia

What Hillary Clinton Shows

About the Status of Women

"Unfortunately, at the beginning of the 21st Century, the stereotype that defines women alternatively as adorable, useless and emotionally unstable creatures; or as cold, distant, but competent manipulators, remains fully in force.  … The important thing is that the two minorities [Blacks and women] settle their differences to achieve a common goal: to get the Republicans out of the White House." 

By Sergio Muñoz Bata

Translated By Douglas Myles Rasmussen

January 16, 2008

Colombia - El Tiempo - Original Article (Spanish)

For the first time in history, a woman or an African American has a chance of winning the presidency. 

This isn't the first time a woman or an African American has sought the presidential nomination of his or her party.

In 1872, suffragist Victoria Chaflin Woodhull  launched her presidential candidacy to promote gender equality. A hundred years later, Shirley Chisholm , an African American woman, also unsuccessfully sought the nomination of the Democratic Party. In 1984 in his quixotic attempt to reach the White House, Jesse Jackson managed to win a few primaries.  

What's new about 2008 is that for the first time in United States history, a woman or an African American has a real chance of winning the presidency. And the confrontation between members of two minorities has generated a debate about their electability, the state of race relations in the country and the status of women and their access to positions of power. Republicans, whose conservatism is not in vain, chose the safest route and have put forward a fistful of White men. 

As the writer Gloria Steinem has rightly noted, the competition between a Black man and a woman has shown that gender, even more than race, remains the most restrictive factor of life in the United States. 

“Black men,” writes Steinem, “were granted the vote 50 years before women of any race could cast a ballot.  And, in general, Black men have been able to ascend to positions of power, from the armed forces to the Boards of Directors of big corporations, much faster and in greater numbers than women.”  

Unfortunately, at the beginning of the 21st Century, the stereotype that defines women alternatively as adorable, useless and emotionally unstable creatures; or as cold, distant, but competent manipulators, remains fully in force.  Thus, it's no accident that the women who have been able to triumph in politics on their own merits, such as Golda Meir, Margaret Thatcher or Angela Merkel, have been characterized as “Iron Women.” 

At the beginning of the campaign, Hillary was accused of being cold, calculating and manipulative; and even her intelligence was seen as more of a vice than a virtue.

'Secret Weapon' [Het Parool, The Netherlands]

Then, two campaign incidents brought about a change of heart. In the first, the eyes of the candidate became moist while answering a question about how she manages to combine her duties as a mother and wife with a political career WATCH . In the other, she reacted with anger at the attacks launched at her by her two closest competitors. In both cases she showed herself to be simply a human being. 

For some observers, the “Iron Lady” looked weak, demonstrating her incapacity to govern the nation. It's also possible that some voters were moved and handed her a triumph in New Hampshire. For the most cynical, it was all a farce, because Hillary is cold, hypocritical and manipulative. 

It's evident that sexism is not the only thing that motivates the opposition to Hillary Clinton, a woman who lacks the charisma that Obama has displayed.  It is also true that the contrast between the candidates reveals a generational divide. The young support Obama, and Hillary is popular among older voters. This doesn't imply, however, the superiority of men. 

The important thing is that when the crucial moment comes, the two minorities must settle their differences to achieve a common goal: to get the Republicans out of the White House.

SEE ALSO:

Financial Times Deutschland, Germany

Hillary's Quest: Between

Tears and the Throne …

http://worldmeets.us/financialtimesdeutschland000050.shtml

Le Temps, Switzerland

Hillary: The Risk of Breaking

With Her 'Iron Lady' Image

http://worldmeets.us/letemps0000010.shtml

Click Here for Spanish Version