1. The interview with Pam Schroeder, who is the former Democratic Congress-woman,
is a discussion about Hilary Clinton as a female candidate for presidency. When Hilary Clinton made the decision about running for a president, she probably knew there would be some difficulties. However, her expectations probably didn’t include so much sexism in America. According to American ideas there shouldn’t be racism or sexism in this country. This is the country where “all men are equal.” Wait…is it men or human? Yes, it is “men.” Here we are deciding for a president of our country based on race and sex. Interestingly, even Pam Schroeder who supports Clinton, has her doubts about her becoming the next president. While Schroeder acknowledges that Clinton is a very strong person and an excellent candidate, she also mentions that there is still a lot of sexism in America. More importantly, as mentioned in the interview, the fact that Clinton is a woman, her speeches may remind men of their wives, who are in charge of the domestic duties. Even though Hilary Clinton may have unveiled the glass ceiling, she is trying really hard to get through it. Many Americans cannot get the idea of a president who can cry or wear make up. It is very interesting to see what is stronger in America, sexism or racism. And that we will find out after the elections.
2. According to Gloria Steinem, who Co-founder of Women Media Center,
the media has created and an “either or” situation about Obama and Clinton. This is because it is for the first time in the American history that the candidates running for president are an African American man and white female. Supposing that the media is the one to blame for creating such conflict. Who are the buyers of such information? Who is the media? Aren’t they all Americans? All these ideas are created by the American people. The interview also highlights an important point, not all democrats vote based on democratic ideas. Instead, they vote race over sex or the other way around. While the entire country is going through some serious crisis, American democrats argue whether or not they should vote for the African American male or the white female. America never had both African American and female president. Yes, it is a big step for this country. However, what about changing the history by working together? The irony of all this is that racism and sexism are different forms of discrimination. The question is which one will win. Even though the country is in a desperate need for change, many Americans have inculcated ideas that won’t change for many years to come.
2 comments:
Response #1
Tatev
Hi there Marianna. Of course your blog was the first one that I read and as always it was clear and you demonstrated your ideas very nicely. I agree with you that sexism and racism are different kinds of discrimination and it is wrong to vote based on those two categories. I do not think that Americans should vote their candidates based on color or sex. The most important thing is to agree with candidates views and see what she or he would do if they were to become presidents. Like you said I too do not think that Hillary knew that she was going to get so much sexism from Americans but I think this is already too late to back out. The second interview was interesting too. It is media that gives average people information on what is happening with candidates and what are they doing. So all the good stuff comes from those who actually do the news about politicians and their present status. But at the same the negative stuff comes from them as well. I mean they are the ones that tell us that Americans are not ready for a female or African American president, but maybe they are. If reporters would not plant that idea maybe it would not even exist.
Mariam R#1
Hello Marianna,
I really enjoyed reading your analysis on both interviews. I can’t wait to see what happens in November. You are right, everyone in the media are Americans and instead of uniting to vote for the candidate who is best qualified for the position, they are voting based on gender and race. We are now in the 21st century and it is unfortunate to see that sexism and racism is still a great issue. Hillary Clinton has come a long way, and it is great to see a female come this far, but in my opinion America is not yet ready for a female president. Since day one she has been criticized for her feminine behavior and for expressing her emotions. Barrack Obama as well has faced many discriminations and has been judged based on his race. The media has even questioned his patriotism, which in my opinion is a sign of discrimination. From what I have seen, Clinton and Obama have faced much more criticism than McCain, and I think this as well has a lot to do with discrimination. For many years the presidents of the United States have been white males and those who are not ready for a change, create conflict and raise questions in order to prevent Obama and Clinton from reaching to the top. It is time for a change and this change is in the hands of the U.S. citizens.
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