Female Vice President: Breaking Walls and Shattering Ceilings?

As previously mentioned, I find US politics too theatrical. It’s theatre in a way that a lot of people enjoy; Easy to speculate, filled with plot twists and scandal and vaguely, although superficially inspiring. I suppose its the “Legally Blonde” of theatre.

Usually around election time I will watch the speeches, read up on the issues, compare the candidates etc. But this time around my focus is placed upon those commentating the election.

On having either a black president or a female vice president some internet prophets READ: Perez Hilton have commented that either way “we are breaking down walls and shattering ceilings.” Some have even called McCain’s decision for a female running mate a “maverick” decision.

I’m trying not to sound negative but I can’t help but find this offensive. Maybe because at this stage of the game I find it a little pathetic that the US is having women in higher echelons of government executive only now and celebrating their progressiveness, when everywhere else in the world has been “breaking down walls” for DECADES (Thatcher, Peron, Campbel, Merkel- to name a few). The walls have been broken down before- you’re just refusing to walk across.

It just seems like the US takes their own path. Their own “American made- rise from the ashes-everything from nothing” path. Its the stuff car commercials are made out of; tried tested and true.  While the rest of the liberal democratic world PROGRESSES- big word for growth and improvement- the US likes to maintain their own brand. Metric system shmetric shmystem, free health care shmee shmealth care etc. When they finally DO join the rest of the world (30 years later) they make themselves seem like they are leading the free world.

Before the US POTENTIALLY elects a female vice president these are the countries that have already elected a female leader or have appointed a female head of state

I think its necessary for women to be in executive branches of government because we make up roughly 50% of the population. But what I think also needs to be addressed is the expectation that because  a women is elected she will a) represent the needs of women and b) represent the needs of ALL women.

The first and second wave of feminism in the 1960’s through the 1990’s were ground breaking in the way that they united women under the banner of female equality- equal pay, voting rights, social mobility etc. But now into the new millenium we are seeing that ‘woman’ is not a self evident term.  Its not a big tent that every women can stand under by virtue of their biology. There are diversties among us; race, culture, age, class etc.

Could Sarah Palin- a rich white woman with social mobility really represent the needs of latin women, poor women, single mothers etc?

I’m becoming quite cynical about this “change” thing. Change needs to happen in the SYSTEM, not by shuffling around a few people and adding some new “wall breaking” faces.