Civic Engagement
For my civic engagement I decided to help out with the Obama campaign by volunteering for a day. They had me go canvass on Friday October 31st and Saturday November 1st to get the people out to vote that coming Tuesday, instead of just getting people to vote I decided to spend a little extra time talking to them about why they liked the different candidates and what they knew about the local election. I ended up in the Historic Baker district of Denver which is located just west of Broadway around 4th. What I discovered while canvassing was that many people did not want to talk to me about the election so close because they were so frustrated with the constant bombardment of election talk and information or they would just say I am going to vote, I’ve already early voted, and I’m filling out my mail in ballot tonight. But I did get lucky and got to speak to two individuals in great depth about the local election, and encouraged about 10 other people to go out and vote so I felt like I made a little bit of a difference. In total I spent around 3 hours on Friday and 3 hours on Saturday walking around canvassing.
Through out this experience I observed that many people were starting to get tense with the election getting so close, they also were extremely tired of talking about the election and how it would affect them. I think the mobilizing that Obama did to get people out to vote was really amazing; in the end I don’t think people were prepared to have a candidate spend that much time and attention on them.
In the end the best part of this experience was when I got to talk to one lady about amendment 46. At first she was really excited to vote yes on this amendment because she thought it would finally bring some sort of equality to Colorado. I was really hurt when I had to tell her the truth about how amendment 46 was really going to take away many opportunities for communities of color and for many women. She appeared really heartbroken and almost to the point of tears, that was until I talked to her about how she could tell everyone she knew to vote no on 46 and that would give us a fighting chance for equality. After we talked for about 30 minutes she seem really excited again, this time to educate her friends about the truth with amendment 46. After that conversation I felt really proud because I feel like I happened to change one vote in the favor for equality when it was almost lost to lack of knowledge. I just hope that the other people canvassing had some similar experiences and that was the reason 46 and 48 did not pass. In my heart I’m really glad that we had this opportunity to go out and make a difference and it appeared to of really paid off.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Amendment 48 & Civic Engagement
The Amendment 48 lecture and the assigned readings were very eye opening. I didn't realize before how far reaching the implications of Amendment 48 are. I have been talking with various friends about Amendment 48 since the lecture and we are all very horrified, not only by the effects the amendment would have on pregnant women's rights but also that many people are not aware of the full extent of these effects. Even more horrifying, for me, is that people in favor of Amendment 48 also fail to realize the amendment will impact more than just the verdict of Roe v. Wade or rather they see this information as the "clever" attempt at persuasion from the opposing pro-choice argument.
I was very surprised to hear some abortion abolitionists are now opposed to the redefinition of "person" due to their own experiences of being subjected to its use outside of the anti-abortion objective. The fact that it's not worry about what could happen, it's what is already happening to pregnant women where such redefinitions have occurred and the denial of these events being caused by 48-esque approvals is shocking and scares me quite a bit.
My disgust for this amendment led me to get involved with the "No on 48" campaign for the civic engagement project. On October 11th I volunteered at Planned Parenthood to canvass for "No" from 11am - 5pm. The three canvassing organizers did not seem to expect anyone to show up for this big canvassing day so when a mere six volunteers, including myself, arrived they were ecstatic. Each volunteer received an information packet as the organizers began covering the facts of Amendment 48: what it would affect, how it would affect it, and all the little numbers and figures Americans find so compelling, most of which I had already learned in our lecture on the topic.
The volunteers then paired up to practice what we would say during our door-to-door mission. I honestly did not do very well with this; I could have rambled on about the amendment any ol' day but when asked to sum up the major points in under a minute, I seemed to forget everything and became completely tongue-tied. Luckily, this did not matter much when we split up in three groups and actually began canvassing in a Lone Tree neighborhood; we barely had a chance to get a word out before shoving a flyer into the hands of residents who were eager to close their doors. My favorite encounter was with a woman who claimed to be having a party but was clearly not - there was no evidence of people enjoying themselves inside nor were there any cars parked outside of the house ("Elementary, my dear Watson!") More often though, no one was home so we left the flyers at their door and hoped for the best.
The whole ordeal wasn't exactly how I had imagined it. I suppose I thought there would be more people, marching out in a mass to canvass or relentlessly calling voters and offering the facts, making all of Planned Parenthood buzz. Even though our canvassing troop was very small, our time was valuable nonetheless, evident in the success of the amendment being denied by Colorado voters. I garnered a sense of togetherness as well as a feeling of power in this togetherness. I was also filled with a sense of pride for having a small part in defending choice.
RE: The Law and Politics of Affirmative Action
I wasn't as unsettled by professor Melissa Hart's approach as others were given that she was unsure of who her audience would be and that as she apologized for her manner we kept confirming she was with like-minded people. Also, for a person who seemed more used to a debate format on the subject it seems logical she would present a more biased view. I liked her point that the system shouldn't be changed to conform to the racism of others; her specific example being those who look around a classroom and think a person was only accepted into a college because of the color of that person's skin or that they were cheated out of acceptance for the same reason.
Like Ashley, I can see where Ward Connerly is coming from, trying to eradicate any "racial preferences" to considerations based purely on merit but this is at the expense of diversity and community supports, among other things. A person's qualifications are already considered before racial considerations are taken into account. With abolishing affirmative action, how then is unconscious discrimination to be dealt with? It is impossible to determine a person's intent in such a matter and without laws to safeguard against discrimination how can we assume fairness in, for example, application processes - that a person was not accepted for racially charged reasons rather than purely based on merit (as per Connerly's goal). Unfortunately, it is just not plausible in our society. I'm not saying affirmative action is a panacea, that with it discrimination is magically a thing of the past, but it serves as at least a leg-up, for lack of better explanation.
To say that gender or race based programs will still be funded but only if they are open to everyone doesn't make sense and completely defeats their purpose. It is shocking just how many programs would be eliminated, even scholarships having anything to do with race or gender. Ye gods!
In concurrence with others, my worry is how deceptive the amendment is. I remember a gal telling me once she was at the MLK day parade on Colfax and an African-American man approached her trying to get signature to get the amendment on the ballot. She asked if he really knew what the amendment was about and it turns out he had even been deceived by the language in the amendment. It's frightening that someone who would be directly affected by the amendment, thought they knew what it was all about and was fervently supporting it, was mistaken. With that, the uninformed must be far more horrifyingly (and unknowingly) perplexed.
“Women in Politics”
Having Faith Winter come speak about women in electoral politics was a really amazing experience for me because she really motivated me to possibly run for a political office one day. I know the point of the speech was to empower women but as a queer man of color I felt like I am underrepresented as well and that if I ran for office I could finally have representation. This presentation also really made me think about my mom and giving her the invitation to run for an elected office. But then I remember that she is a Canadian citizen and can’t run for office.
The presentation also made me realize how important having women in office really is because it will help make the change that we thought women would get when they were given the right to vote. I still have faith that women can be the moral compass that they used as a campaign strategy in the suffrage movement. From my experience women do have a stronger moral sense and have the ability to create legislation that will promote equality and change. Something I learned from Faith’s speech was that when there are more women in a legislative body there tends to be more socially just laws passed. If this is true then as a social justice advocate I need to advocate more to have a large majority of women in all legislative bodies so that more socially just legislation will pass.
Lastly Faith really taught me the power of an elected office; she said she gets to make change as an elected official rather than trying to lobby for others to make change for her. If I really want to see drastic changes happen around me I will need to take a more active part in causing that change and one great way I can do that is by running for a political office. I just hope one day that I might possibly get the chance to run for a political office, but if not I hope that I can invite and encourage women around me to run for political offices so they can make more positive change in our society.
Having Faith Winter come speak about women in electoral politics was a really amazing experience for me because she really motivated me to possibly run for a political office one day. I know the point of the speech was to empower women but as a queer man of color I felt like I am underrepresented as well and that if I ran for office I could finally have representation. This presentation also really made me think about my mom and giving her the invitation to run for an elected office. But then I remember that she is a Canadian citizen and can’t run for office.
The presentation also made me realize how important having women in office really is because it will help make the change that we thought women would get when they were given the right to vote. I still have faith that women can be the moral compass that they used as a campaign strategy in the suffrage movement. From my experience women do have a stronger moral sense and have the ability to create legislation that will promote equality and change. Something I learned from Faith’s speech was that when there are more women in a legislative body there tends to be more socially just laws passed. If this is true then as a social justice advocate I need to advocate more to have a large majority of women in all legislative bodies so that more socially just legislation will pass.
Lastly Faith really taught me the power of an elected office; she said she gets to make change as an elected official rather than trying to lobby for others to make change for her. If I really want to see drastic changes happen around me I will need to take a more active part in causing that change and one great way I can do that is by running for a political office. I just hope one day that I might possibly get the chance to run for a political office, but if not I hope that I can invite and encourage women around me to run for political offices so they can make more positive change in our society.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Equal Rights for Women
After hearing Dr. Syrett’s lecture on the Equal Rights Amendment, I did a lot of thinking about the equality women have strived for, whether it’s in politics, the workplace, or society in general. As much progress as women have made, one thing that struck me was that women still don’t have the ability to make their own decisions regarding their life without criticism or disapproval from society. The idea that women have a responsibility to stay at home with their kids is an antiquated belief but one that is still very relevant to today’s society. Many women are raised to believe that their main goal in life is to get married and be a mother. If they choose to deviate from that plan, they may have the right to but that doesn’t mean there won’t be societal repercussions. It amazes me that in a constantly evolving world, we can still think of women as somehow inferior to men. However, when I see women like Sarah Palin promoting the “hockey mom” image, I see that women themselves can be perpetuating their own problem. It’s not that I disagree with what she believes in; it’s the fact that she is promoting the idea that this is how women should be. As opposed to embracing the idea that each woman is an individual and individuals are different, she is promoting the stereotype that all women are hockey or soccer moms. I find it funny that she complains about the sexism she endures on the campaign trail, which is valid, yet she is unable to distinguish herself as anything but a “typical mom”. I believe women like Sarah Palin, who promote conformity as opposed to individuality, are seriously detrimental to the feminist movement.
Community Engagement
I realized that perhaps I was supposed to write a blog devoted entirely to my community engagement, rather than writing it as snippets in other blogs. So, just in case, I'm going to re-document it all here, and talk about my most recent experience as well.
I spent 2 hours volunteering for Hank Eng (CD6), and another hour at an event for him. I spent 2 hours volunteering for NARAL's No on 48 campaign, and a couple of hours at the Cable Center on Election night.
The latter two were my favorite activities. Especially after seeing No on 48 get trounced the way it did, tabling for something that I believed in so strongly made me feel like I'd done something important. Election night was extremely exciting because of all the energy in the room (it didn't hurt that Barack Obama won, either).
Finally, this Saturday, I spent an hour at the No on Prop 8 protest downtown. I'd never been to a protest before, but it felt wonderful to be involved in something that I hope will be historic. Someday, I hope people look back on Nov. 15, the day LGBTQ people and their allies rallied and marched throughout the country, and see it as the beginning of a larger movement to bring equal rights to the LGBTQ community. Either way, I saw a lot of great signs (and made one of my own). There were only a few counter-protesters, and while their signs and the attitudes that went along with them were very disturbing to me, it was wonderful to see that there were very little of them. By contrast, the capital was filled with people protesting for our rights. It gave me hope, and a sense of comradery, to see that so many people were willing to come out and say that Prop 8 was not okay.
I spent 2 hours volunteering for Hank Eng (CD6), and another hour at an event for him. I spent 2 hours volunteering for NARAL's No on 48 campaign, and a couple of hours at the Cable Center on Election night.
The latter two were my favorite activities. Especially after seeing No on 48 get trounced the way it did, tabling for something that I believed in so strongly made me feel like I'd done something important. Election night was extremely exciting because of all the energy in the room (it didn't hurt that Barack Obama won, either).
Finally, this Saturday, I spent an hour at the No on Prop 8 protest downtown. I'd never been to a protest before, but it felt wonderful to be involved in something that I hope will be historic. Someday, I hope people look back on Nov. 15, the day LGBTQ people and their allies rallied and marched throughout the country, and see it as the beginning of a larger movement to bring equal rights to the LGBTQ community. Either way, I saw a lot of great signs (and made one of my own). There were only a few counter-protesters, and while their signs and the attitudes that went along with them were very disturbing to me, it was wonderful to see that there were very little of them. By contrast, the capital was filled with people protesting for our rights. It gave me hope, and a sense of comradery, to see that so many people were willing to come out and say that Prop 8 was not okay.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Civic Engagement
I volunteered with the NO on 48! group, which I found to be very interesting. I was attracted to NO on 48! because I thought it was absolutely the most absurd thing I had heard of and if it had passed, it could have had serious consequences not only for women but all of America. Abortion is obviously a very touchy issue but amendment 48 was about so much more than abortion, another reason I was drawn to it. When one amendment can impact so many different areas of life, I think at the very least people have a responsibility to be completely informed and aware of the amendment. From my experience volunteering with the group, I found that most people had a general idea of the amendment would entail but they didn’t necessarily understand the extent to which it could go. Unfortunately, the group had a couple of tabling sessions cancelled but we were still able to adequately inform people on amendment 48, at least on the DU campus. One thing that really stuck out to me was that even though it was a “women’s issue” nearly all the volunteers at the meetings were male. The two student leaders were female but they were pretty much the only females. I thought it was great that men were helping out with the cause but there was part of me that wondered if it was more a reflection of a lack of female supporters than an abundance of male supporters. One thing I liked about volunteering for the group was that they were just focused on informing people, not changing their minds. I think there was a general understanding that if people were well informed on the issue then there was a very strong chance it wouldn’t pass. Although not everyone felt this way, many of the volunteers wisely avoided the abortion issue and instead focused on how it violated a woman’s constitutional right. By doing that, it made amendment 48 a non-partisan issue that almost every person, male or female, pro-life or pro-choice, could identify with.
Women in Politics
While I thought Mrs. Winters was nice a person and had good intentions, I completely disagreed with her and thought it was the weakest of all the lectures. There are many antiquated ideas of what a woman should be and those stereotypes greatly hurt a woman’s chance to be treated equally and respectfully, especially in a political environment. However, and I don’t mean to be disrespectful, I thought she actually did a disservice to women politicians rather than help them. Based off her lecture, I think she is completely out of her league jumping into politics but that is more a reflection of her age and inexperience than her sex. She mentioned negative stereotypes of women but then she essentially generalized all women politicians by saying they are all non-partisan, willing to collaborate, and work across lines of authority. I was little thrown-off by this because there were absolutely no facts to back up those statements but she lost my support when she mentioned this is true because SHE is willing to do all those things! She is not a reflection of women politicians, nobody is. Every woman is different and every woman politician is different and to generalize women like that, even if is positive, exacerbates the problem people have with perceiving women, rather than help it. She is obviously a very ambitious woman but a problem I have with ambition in politics is that it can cloud people’s judgment and put an individual ahead of the people. While I have no idea what she is like as a politician, I hope her ambition to be a politician doesn’t supersede her reasons for wanting to be a politician.
White House Project and Wrap Up
My apologies on posting so late. The White House Project was an interesting lecture. It seemed to me that women should have higher goals than just getting on to the school board. I'm sorry if that sounds snotty, but women should be going to the senate, the house of reps and the actual white house. I know that the project cannot do everything for women, but it seems like a good start to get more women into power. One thing that was very interesting is when she discussed that the general public does not trust women with the economy and national security, but the public believes that women are more trustworthy than men. I feel like it is notion that allows women to do some things, but prohibits other things due to the fact that we are "emotional and shouldn't be trusted with such important issues". I really admire the overall goals that the White House Project has, but I feel like the organization could be better. They need to expand to more states and get more women running for office. I also think it was interesting that she discussed that once women have "permission" to run, then they run. I didn't quite understand what she meant by that. Why should women need permission for anything. We are quite capable of making our own decisions and can run without getting permission from males or anyone else.
In terms of civic engagement:
I volunteered more than 5 hours working for Colorado for McCain, I know he is not the most popular person in class but I still enjoyed volunteering. I really felt respected. My major responsibility was to call unregistered voters and talk to the issues that they wanted to talk about. I did get called a bitch a couple of times, but other than that it was a very good time. I liked getting to know people around the campaign. One of the perks I got, was to actually meet with John McCain at a women's town hall meeting. I got to ask him a question and held a bit of conversation with him. He was one of the most polite people that I have ever met, probably because he was campaigning but still. I also made really good connections for later on in my life. I meet a few lawyers that we volunteering that were really excited to hear my plans for law school. I didn't expect to go and make connections but it did happen. Although McCain did not win, I feel like the experience that I had because of the campaign will help me with future plans in life and if I do go into politics.
In terms of this class:
I really did enjoy this class, although I do believe that it was a little biased to the left but that is OK. :) I felt like my opinion was taken seriously and that I could express my opinions without getting yelled at or anything like that. I hope another class like this comes around again.
I wish all of you the best of luck with the rest of school this year and I hope all of you have a wonderful winter break.
Take Care,
Chelsea
Everyone Go Vote! Decide!
Persuadable Voters in 2008: Campaign Effects and Candidate Strategy
This presentation was probably the most educational class I have ever been too, I learned so much about elections and how they really work in our modern society. For me I came to a huge realization that our society is corrupt if this is how political campaigns run their elections. For me they way they target voters on wedge issues really scared me because people are so motivated by one or two issues that they will vote against all other issues they find important. And a lot of these issues appear to be social issues like abortion or gay marriage. I personally think we shouldn’t even talk about social issues unless they pertain to giving people more rights and abilities to choose in their own life. I don’t understand why our country fights so hard over whether to give or deny a group of people rights, for me it’s all about giving the most rights to the most people possible. But the tactics used by politicians seems like it is not about talking about the issues and how they will lead our country to a better and brighter future but rather why my views are better than their views. To me it seems really childish that we debate why one is better rather than how one is going to be the best thing for the country. For me I would really like to see an election where the candidates drop all the games talk about the issues and allow people to decide on those who they think is better no more of these games that plays games with our heads.
Maybe it is just me but I currently feel like the whole country is running around in a stage of infancy and paranoia with the election, I really hope that the people that are still undecided can figure out who they think will run this country in the best way possible and cast their vote! But with the record turnout at the primaries I’m excited to see the record turnout for the election in a few weeks. I can only hope for the best and that we as a country will move forward with positive change!
This presentation was probably the most educational class I have ever been too, I learned so much about elections and how they really work in our modern society. For me I came to a huge realization that our society is corrupt if this is how political campaigns run their elections. For me they way they target voters on wedge issues really scared me because people are so motivated by one or two issues that they will vote against all other issues they find important. And a lot of these issues appear to be social issues like abortion or gay marriage. I personally think we shouldn’t even talk about social issues unless they pertain to giving people more rights and abilities to choose in their own life. I don’t understand why our country fights so hard over whether to give or deny a group of people rights, for me it’s all about giving the most rights to the most people possible. But the tactics used by politicians seems like it is not about talking about the issues and how they will lead our country to a better and brighter future but rather why my views are better than their views. To me it seems really childish that we debate why one is better rather than how one is going to be the best thing for the country. For me I would really like to see an election where the candidates drop all the games talk about the issues and allow people to decide on those who they think is better no more of these games that plays games with our heads.
Maybe it is just me but I currently feel like the whole country is running around in a stage of infancy and paranoia with the election, I really hope that the people that are still undecided can figure out who they think will run this country in the best way possible and cast their vote! But with the record turnout at the primaries I’m excited to see the record turnout for the election in a few weeks. I can only hope for the best and that we as a country will move forward with positive change!
Say Yes to Affermative Action! Vote NO! on 46!
The Law and Politics of Affirmative Action
Affirmative Action the great no no term of the century. For millions of people they think it is a system that gives bonus privileges to minorities in this country. This large tumor of ignorance seems to be growing everyday with things like Amendment 46. At first I didn’t know the full extent of how affirmative action worked, I thought it had something to do with goals and quotas but I knew that if you had lower grades you wouldn’t be bumped up to a higher status or get more points. But the way white males talk about how because of affirmative action they are now oppressed really angers me. They are some of the most privileged people in society and yet they feel the need to complain that they are being mistreated in some way. I don’t understand how they cannot see the huge amount of privilege that they already have why do they need even more special treatment?
I feel like to stop policies like these from happening again in the future we need to educate the population on what affirmative action really is and how it really works. That people who benefit from affirmative action deserve to be there but had to go through more struggles due to society to get to the same place. I hope there comes a day when affirmative action is not necessary but currently the policies to help that are not being created. We need to start by making education more equal across the board, instead of taking money away from schools that are failing start by giving them money. Get more teachers to have smaller class sizes in intercity schools and provide more options for families so kids can stay in school longer when they get older.
I hope this amendment does not pass, I feel like if it does then we will be pushing back progress in Colorado and with the current trends Colorado can’t afford any more push backs. I feel like Colorado is already on the right path and I have faith that this piece of legislation will not pass and that people will realize the importance of providing opportunities to everyone!
Affirmative Action the great no no term of the century. For millions of people they think it is a system that gives bonus privileges to minorities in this country. This large tumor of ignorance seems to be growing everyday with things like Amendment 46. At first I didn’t know the full extent of how affirmative action worked, I thought it had something to do with goals and quotas but I knew that if you had lower grades you wouldn’t be bumped up to a higher status or get more points. But the way white males talk about how because of affirmative action they are now oppressed really angers me. They are some of the most privileged people in society and yet they feel the need to complain that they are being mistreated in some way. I don’t understand how they cannot see the huge amount of privilege that they already have why do they need even more special treatment?
I feel like to stop policies like these from happening again in the future we need to educate the population on what affirmative action really is and how it really works. That people who benefit from affirmative action deserve to be there but had to go through more struggles due to society to get to the same place. I hope there comes a day when affirmative action is not necessary but currently the policies to help that are not being created. We need to start by making education more equal across the board, instead of taking money away from schools that are failing start by giving them money. Get more teachers to have smaller class sizes in intercity schools and provide more options for families so kids can stay in school longer when they get older.
I hope this amendment does not pass, I feel like if it does then we will be pushing back progress in Colorado and with the current trends Colorado can’t afford any more push backs. I feel like Colorado is already on the right path and I have faith that this piece of legislation will not pass and that people will realize the importance of providing opportunities to everyone!
Ugh! Why Phyllis Why?
The Equal Rights for Which Women?: The E.R.A. of the 1920s and 1970s and Debates over American Women’s Roles
This class discussion really opened my eyes in how the ERA worked and why it didn’t pass. The way the opposition used fear of what was important at the time to keep the law from passing. By targeting the groups that this bill effects and using their fears to make them think the bill will hurt them rather than help them seems like the main strategy used by people trying to stop social justice. It is really hard to understand why people were and still are so against women having an equal role in our society. I look at the heat that Hillary Clinton faced because she was a woman and no one wanted to look at the great abilities that a woman could possible bring to the white house. Why does inequality matter so much to the conservative right? I personally feel like there are enough resources to go around for all of us on this small planet but why can’t we just share?
What upsets me the most is when individuals from oppressed groups fight against their oppressed identity. For example Phyllis Schlafly was one of the biggest opponents for the E.R.A. and she was a women who did not even follow her own ideals. Claiming that women need to stay in the home to help their husbands, and that the laws need to protect women because they are more venerable compared to men, yet she went out speaking all over the country and didn’t stay home with her husband. It is people like this that scare women not to stand up for themselves and take the abuse that society is dishing out. How can she as a woman stand against other women to help suppress their rights, to me that is just mind baffling and seems like an oxymoron. I don’t understand what would motivate someone to fight so hard against something that will ultimately make their life better? For me I really hope that something like the E.R.A. will appear in congress and in the house again so we can prove to the world that the United States is capable of equality and even though that we have a horrible history we realize that and want to move forward with it!
This class discussion really opened my eyes in how the ERA worked and why it didn’t pass. The way the opposition used fear of what was important at the time to keep the law from passing. By targeting the groups that this bill effects and using their fears to make them think the bill will hurt them rather than help them seems like the main strategy used by people trying to stop social justice. It is really hard to understand why people were and still are so against women having an equal role in our society. I look at the heat that Hillary Clinton faced because she was a woman and no one wanted to look at the great abilities that a woman could possible bring to the white house. Why does inequality matter so much to the conservative right? I personally feel like there are enough resources to go around for all of us on this small planet but why can’t we just share?
What upsets me the most is when individuals from oppressed groups fight against their oppressed identity. For example Phyllis Schlafly was one of the biggest opponents for the E.R.A. and she was a women who did not even follow her own ideals. Claiming that women need to stay in the home to help their husbands, and that the laws need to protect women because they are more venerable compared to men, yet she went out speaking all over the country and didn’t stay home with her husband. It is people like this that scare women not to stand up for themselves and take the abuse that society is dishing out. How can she as a woman stand against other women to help suppress their rights, to me that is just mind baffling and seems like an oxymoron. I don’t understand what would motivate someone to fight so hard against something that will ultimately make their life better? For me I really hope that something like the E.R.A. will appear in congress and in the house again so we can prove to the world that the United States is capable of equality and even though that we have a horrible history we realize that and want to move forward with it!
Monday, November 10, 2008
48!
Danger on the Ballot: How the "Human Life Amendment" Threatens the Well being of Women, Children, and Families.
This topic was really intense for me to listen to, I did not realize the effect that 48 would have on the laws and how it played out in our culture. While doing the readings I was really appalled to what happened to these women in other states. The one that will stick with me the most is the story of the disabled woman who had a re-occurrence of her cancer and she was pregnant. I started to cry when I was reading how the laws in Southern Carolina didn’t protect her or her child’s life. To me it really addressed how the system doesn’t seem to work for the few that are at the bottom or in the margins, but works really well for the ones that are at the top and have power. It seems like the ideals of the conservative right tend to have a lot of money and this is how these laws are presented on the ballot and to me that’s unfair.
Laws and amendments like 48 really appear to be creating targets on the people that the majority of society sees as unfit and uses a loop hole to try and remove them from the society. These laws really would affect poor women of color who are in situations that are not necessarily their own doing, also with the passing of this law it will give a lot more power to doctors who tend to be white and male. This power dynamic is quite unacceptable in my eyes and I really hope that this amendment does not pass. My question is how do these amendments get on to the ballot, I feel like this issues is a civil rights issue, and that Roe v. Wade already settled the score on abortion? It is really hard for me to understand why the United States of America is still discussing issues of civil rights, for being one of the world’s strongest super powers we squabble over issues that should have been dealt with years ago. I am just hoping for the day that the United States can give equal rights to all its citizens and members that are involved like we promised over 200 years ago, I am really disappointed in how far we haven’t come.
This topic was really intense for me to listen to, I did not realize the effect that 48 would have on the laws and how it played out in our culture. While doing the readings I was really appalled to what happened to these women in other states. The one that will stick with me the most is the story of the disabled woman who had a re-occurrence of her cancer and she was pregnant. I started to cry when I was reading how the laws in Southern Carolina didn’t protect her or her child’s life. To me it really addressed how the system doesn’t seem to work for the few that are at the bottom or in the margins, but works really well for the ones that are at the top and have power. It seems like the ideals of the conservative right tend to have a lot of money and this is how these laws are presented on the ballot and to me that’s unfair.
Laws and amendments like 48 really appear to be creating targets on the people that the majority of society sees as unfit and uses a loop hole to try and remove them from the society. These laws really would affect poor women of color who are in situations that are not necessarily their own doing, also with the passing of this law it will give a lot more power to doctors who tend to be white and male. This power dynamic is quite unacceptable in my eyes and I really hope that this amendment does not pass. My question is how do these amendments get on to the ballot, I feel like this issues is a civil rights issue, and that Roe v. Wade already settled the score on abortion? It is really hard for me to understand why the United States of America is still discussing issues of civil rights, for being one of the world’s strongest super powers we squabble over issues that should have been dealt with years ago. I am just hoping for the day that the United States can give equal rights to all its citizens and members that are involved like we promised over 200 years ago, I am really disappointed in how far we haven’t come.
Saturday, November 8, 2008
Pink among a world of Black Suits
Well better late than never!! I had a crazy week last week and never got the time to talk about the White House Project. I was not sure what to expect what Mrs. Winters talked to us. I had never heard of the White House Project before I had read about it a few days before class and was very interested about what she had to say. I was rather shocked when she was more interested into pushing women to get involved then she was being grateful for the women who already were, like herself.
I know for a fact that I never want to be in a political position at all. Even if someone comes up to me and tells me to, I really have no interest in it at all. I agree 100% about what Sarah Hyde wrote, when she said Faith spent a lot of time talking about why it is important to have women in politics, these claims were based on stereotypes and generalizations about how women think and operate. She said that women, unlike men, "work across lines of authority." Meaning that women don't care about receiving credit for their work, they just make sure the job gets done.” I think that the way Mrs. Winters talked, almost put women back a step again in my mind.
There is no way that men will be women and women will be men, so we have to come up with a way to make equal ground and get all the issues covered. I am almost embarrassed to use this as my analogy but it is a very true one, take Legally Blond. Witherspoon defies the odds, gets into law school and works on Capital Hill basically as a Barbie doll. I think that movie was the best example for young girls and women to be involved in politics. That movie proved that all types of girls can follow their dreams, and even though they have most of the world working against them they still can be unique and get to the top if they try hard enough.
I am sure when this movie came out feminists when ballistic because this Barbie stereo type is continuing and that Witherspoon is a beautiful, skinny, blond. Well sadly there is no way getting around this but she was able to overcome obstacles that were put in her path by people who did not believe in her. Those are the ideas that young girls aspiring to be lawyers or do anything in politics should remember. You can do anything if you put your mind to it. Even be a pink Barbie doll among a world of black business suits.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Women and Politics
While I wasn’t too impressed with Ms. Winter’s lecture, because of the generalizations that she made, (others have already touched on that, so I won’t go there) I found some of the antidotal stuff very thought provoking.
Right now, if we (as a country) continue on the path we are right now, it’ll take 200 years to achieve political parity. That means it’ll take 200 years for there to be any kind of gender balance in politics. 200 years is almost as long as the United States has been a country. Of course, that is assuming that political thought will stay stagnant. It took 43 presidents, and all those years of history to open the door for Obama. Can we really say that it’ll take as long as that to reach political parity? I really doubt it.
1 out of 4 children think it’s illegal for a black person or a woman to be the president. I wonder if they are thinking something different now.
The three H’s…husband/hair/hemlines…can any of these things be more interesting than a woman’s agenda. Unless she’s Brittney Spears or some other Hollywood train wreak? I don’t think so. Even Palin’s agenda was more interesting than her “first dude”, her $10,000 a week stylist, and her $150,000 wardrobe…
1 woman=man enough? 2 women=cat fight 3 or more women=agenda
Right now, if we (as a country) continue on the path we are right now, it’ll take 200 years to achieve political parity. That means it’ll take 200 years for there to be any kind of gender balance in politics. 200 years is almost as long as the United States has been a country. Of course, that is assuming that political thought will stay stagnant. It took 43 presidents, and all those years of history to open the door for Obama. Can we really say that it’ll take as long as that to reach political parity? I really doubt it.
1 out of 4 children think it’s illegal for a black person or a woman to be the president. I wonder if they are thinking something different now.
The three H’s…husband/hair/hemlines…can any of these things be more interesting than a woman’s agenda. Unless she’s Brittney Spears or some other Hollywood train wreak? I don’t think so. Even Palin’s agenda was more interesting than her “first dude”, her $10,000 a week stylist, and her $150,000 wardrobe…
1 woman=man enough? 2 women=cat fight 3 or more women=agenda
Civic Engagement
I went to the homelessness forum last Thursday, and over all I felt that it lacked direction. (1.5 hours) I did get to hear a great comment though. “You will not hear either candidate take a position on homelessness because McCain is trying to separate himself from Bush (who took a stand against homelessness) and Obama is already dealing with accusations of being a socialist.
I also went to the election night results at the cable center. I agree with previous bloggers that the excitement could be felt in the air, but it felt kind of repetitive. While others might disagree with me I felt we only confirmed what we already knew weeks ago. McCain would have had to win all the swing states and then some, quite the impossible feat considering the state of the economy.
I also went to the election night results at the cable center. I agree with previous bloggers that the excitement could be felt in the air, but it felt kind of repetitive. While others might disagree with me I felt we only confirmed what we already knew weeks ago. McCain would have had to win all the swing states and then some, quite the impossible feat considering the state of the economy.
Yes We Did
Last week, to fulfill the remainder of my community engagement, I went to a function for Hank Eng, who was running for CD6. I was there for about an hour, where I listened to and met a California congressperson who had come in for the occasion. I also chatted several members of the community that I had met at prior events (for Hank as well as my Caucus many, many months ago). I had a good discussion about the dangers of Amendment 48, although I was very aware that I was preaching to the choir.
Speaking of 48, I am so incredibly relieved that it fell through--and by such a wide margin! It is good to see that the people of Colorado are by and large not in favor of such extreme, reproductive-rights hampering measures.
Last night, I attended to event at the Cable Center for a few hours. The excitement in the air was tangible as Obama first won states that were on the border, and then finally won it all! I paraphrase the much derided quote of Michelle Obama when I say that this is the first time I have been proud of my country in a very long time. To witness such a great moment in history was emotionally overwhelming, in the best way possible. To know that my rights as a woman, and as a bisexual woman at that, have a chance at being protected under the new administration was enough to make me breathe a sigh of relief all on its own. But to see the first black and biracial president elected first hand was like witnessing a miracle. And being in a public venue, watching the reactions of people all over the country, made it that much more amazing.
I still look forward to the day a woman is elected president. But to see a black man elected to the highest office, and by such a wide margin of electoral votes, gives me hope again that in our country, with enough time, anything may be possible.
Speaking of 48, I am so incredibly relieved that it fell through--and by such a wide margin! It is good to see that the people of Colorado are by and large not in favor of such extreme, reproductive-rights hampering measures.
Last night, I attended to event at the Cable Center for a few hours. The excitement in the air was tangible as Obama first won states that were on the border, and then finally won it all! I paraphrase the much derided quote of Michelle Obama when I say that this is the first time I have been proud of my country in a very long time. To witness such a great moment in history was emotionally overwhelming, in the best way possible. To know that my rights as a woman, and as a bisexual woman at that, have a chance at being protected under the new administration was enough to make me breathe a sigh of relief all on its own. But to see the first black and biracial president elected first hand was like witnessing a miracle. And being in a public venue, watching the reactions of people all over the country, made it that much more amazing.
I still look forward to the day a woman is elected president. But to see a black man elected to the highest office, and by such a wide margin of electoral votes, gives me hope again that in our country, with enough time, anything may be possible.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
The Way of the Bonobo
After Faith Winter's lecture on Wednesday, I could not help but be reminded of the Bonobo, a species of primate (and rampant sex fiends), whose community is dominated by females. Those researching the species attribute this domination to the rich bonds existing between the females. Winter noted such a connection between women in our society is weak and is what the White House Project is trying to build. However, while the Bonobo bump uglies to achieve social status/acceptance (though I'm sure some women are not above taking this route for their gain), the White House Project gives women tools to interact and gain positive acknowledgment in the male dominated political arena.
Establishing a professional network of women supporting women is simply an enabler for women in general. I see the White House Project not about just blindly getting a mass of women into political office or the like but giving them a resource, an accessible community to find reassurance and strength in what seems a lonely endeavor (i.e. a woman amongst many, many men). Something that says, "I'm kickin' ass, you're kickin' ass. Let's band together and add some power to our kick."
Winter generalized women a lot in her lecture (which is difficult to avoid) but not all women are the same and I cannot support someone just because we share the same gender if I don't agree with that person's views. Sarah Palin, for example, sucks, a lot. She's done so from the beginning (two of my friends who grew up in Wasilla give some great examples: How Local Teens Beat Sarah Palin in the Battle of the Wasilla Skate Park & Palin, Because We Don't Need It). Many women are not swayed to support Palin simply because she is a woman, myself included. But I must give her kudos for inspiring women to say to themselves, "I'm more capable than she is." Yes, you are, ladies! Even though Palin isn't the best representation for women in leadership, or least is not my personal ideal, her moment in the limelight supports the visibility idea behind the White House Project - women in leadership inspiring other women to get out there too. Winter said to invite women to run for office, so see Palin as fuel for invitation rather than just a failure; when a woman says she could be a better leader than Palin, invite her to do so, I have every confidence she could be.
Monday, November 3, 2008
Add Women, Change Everything
There are a lot of social questions that can never be answered. This is my problem with the world, and there is no one in particular to blame for this issue. But I am the kind of person who needs answers, so I find myself mad at the world when they are not readily available. By now, you're like, really Ashley, what are you talking about? I'm talking about women in politics, and what we make of them. How can a woman "be a man" without NOT being a woman? If she's no longer "being a woman" we do not want her, but if she is too much of a girlie girl, we don't take her seriously. You have your Hillaries - the strong "women's woman," sporting the pants suits and playing with the big boys. Then you have your Sarahs - the beautiful "men's woman," rocking $6,000 dresses while smiling and winking at the cameras. But there is no clear cut definition of what we want a woman in politics to look like. We're going to talk about the Hillaries like they're men in womens' suits, and we're going to assume the Sarahs are beautiful idiots. We as a society are unable to look at a woman without marking her - which is my frustration with the world. What would we do if we ran across a woman who played politics like a Hillary, but looked just like a Sarah? Chances are we wouldn't be able to NOT take in account her appearance.
So what about President Barbie? I think the idea is simply FABULOUS, and if I had a daughter I would certainly buy her President Barbie before I even considered purchasing Pregnant Barbie - you know, the cute barbie with the huge belly that was on shelves a few years back? You press on her tummy and the baby magically pops out! Whoever thought of that one is a GENIOUS! I can just imagine all of the conversations on motherhood that were sparked between little girls and their parents! I would not buy pregnant barbie if it was the last toy ever made and my child had her birthday on Christmas. If you ask me, it gives off the impression that that is what little girls are supposed to do with their lives - have babies and still manage to look like barbie! But this is an entirely different issue, so back to president barbie... I love this, it shows that barbie can do more than play in her beach house, pop out babies, and care for her pets.
I think Miss Winter's speech Wednesday was (for lack of a better word) inspiring. Though I do agree with some of our other bloggers - in that I felt I was kinda being sold the program - I felt we needed to hear what was said. Although (like some of our other bloggers pointed out) I am hesitant to agree with the idea that women will bring morals to politics (believe it or not, gentlemen, women too can suffer from lack of morale), I do firmly agree that women would bring a different perspective to politics. Again, it's back to the old social question - we need to be like men, but still be ladies. We need to play hardball, but maintain our "morals." Be a man - but don't forget to look and act like a woman at the same time. Since there are no definite answers, I offer this - we need more women in politics so that we can become comfortable with all types of women. I love the phrase you can't win if you don't play - as women, we cannot expect everything from politics if we don't jump in there for ourselves.
So what about President Barbie? I think the idea is simply FABULOUS, and if I had a daughter I would certainly buy her President Barbie before I even considered purchasing Pregnant Barbie - you know, the cute barbie with the huge belly that was on shelves a few years back? You press on her tummy and the baby magically pops out! Whoever thought of that one is a GENIOUS! I can just imagine all of the conversations on motherhood that were sparked between little girls and their parents! I would not buy pregnant barbie if it was the last toy ever made and my child had her birthday on Christmas. If you ask me, it gives off the impression that that is what little girls are supposed to do with their lives - have babies and still manage to look like barbie! But this is an entirely different issue, so back to president barbie... I love this, it shows that barbie can do more than play in her beach house, pop out babies, and care for her pets.
I think Miss Winter's speech Wednesday was (for lack of a better word) inspiring. Though I do agree with some of our other bloggers - in that I felt I was kinda being sold the program - I felt we needed to hear what was said. Although (like some of our other bloggers pointed out) I am hesitant to agree with the idea that women will bring morals to politics (believe it or not, gentlemen, women too can suffer from lack of morale), I do firmly agree that women would bring a different perspective to politics. Again, it's back to the old social question - we need to be like men, but still be ladies. We need to play hardball, but maintain our "morals." Be a man - but don't forget to look and act like a woman at the same time. Since there are no definite answers, I offer this - we need more women in politics so that we can become comfortable with all types of women. I love the phrase you can't win if you don't play - as women, we cannot expect everything from politics if we don't jump in there for ourselves.
Women in Politics
After Faith Winter's talk and learning about women in politics and the White House Project I definitely do support their goal of getting more women into office but there are aspects of her speech that I don't agree with and are broad generalizations on her part. Firstly, I think it sucks that there aren't more women in politics, there is an entire organization of predominately men making decisions on my behalf without having any knowledge of the female experience. I don't think men politicans should be making health care decisions that affect women and the only way that is going to change is by getting more women in office. There are more women in the US population than men so our numbers in all political venues should be at least 50 - 50 if not more women to be completely representative. I realize this will probably never happen but I think it would be ideal.
Now onto what I didn't agree with. Faith spent a lot of time talking about why it is important to have women in politics, these claims were based on stereotypes and generalizations about how women think and operate. She said that women, unlike men, "work across lines of authority." Meaning that women don't care about receiving credit for their work, they just make sure the job gets done. She used herself as an example of this point, saying she just wants things to get accomplished and it's not important to her that she receive the credit. I don't think that this can be applied to women as a whole. It seemed so outdated to say that essentially women don't need recognition and that men can get the credit for work a women did and that is a good thing.
In addition Faith said that women matter in politics because they think outside the box. I'm really not buying that only women do that. She assumes that all women think outside the box and that it is a very rare thing for a man to do the same, but I think this statement to be untrue and impossible to prove in any case.
Overall, I think Faith has the right intentions and that the work she does is great and worthwhile, but I don't think that her reasons for why we need women in politics hold any weight. We need women in politics because politicians are elected officials who are supposed to represent the views of their people and if there are no men there then that is not a successful sample and then they don't have all the resources to serve successfully.
Now onto what I didn't agree with. Faith spent a lot of time talking about why it is important to have women in politics, these claims were based on stereotypes and generalizations about how women think and operate. She said that women, unlike men, "work across lines of authority." Meaning that women don't care about receiving credit for their work, they just make sure the job gets done. She used herself as an example of this point, saying she just wants things to get accomplished and it's not important to her that she receive the credit. I don't think that this can be applied to women as a whole. It seemed so outdated to say that essentially women don't need recognition and that men can get the credit for work a women did and that is a good thing.
In addition Faith said that women matter in politics because they think outside the box. I'm really not buying that only women do that. She assumes that all women think outside the box and that it is a very rare thing for a man to do the same, but I think this statement to be untrue and impossible to prove in any case.
Overall, I think Faith has the right intentions and that the work she does is great and worthwhile, but I don't think that her reasons for why we need women in politics hold any weight. We need women in politics because politicians are elected officials who are supposed to represent the views of their people and if there are no men there then that is not a successful sample and then they don't have all the resources to serve successfully.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Women's Rights: More Important than Numbers
While I enjoyed the presentation from Faith Winters about The White House Project, there were aspects of the organization’s philosophy with which I did not agree. As opposed to the presentation being an informative discussion, I almost felt like I was being sold something. I found it odd that so much of the presentation was about just getting A LOT of women into politics without really addressing the differences and individuality of each woman out there. I completely understand that more women in politics in terms of diversity and support. However, I think finding people who support women’s rights to be more important than just pushing women (no matter what their views are) into politics.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)