Sarah Palin and the feminist movement

I don’t like Sarah Palin’s politics.  But I have refrained from publicly bashing her. Having witnessed the ignorant carnage left after the Clinton effort, I resolved not to sacrifice short-term potshots for the long-term gain of women in politics.

What is dawning on me now is that I think I actually owe Sarah Palin a debt of gratitude for moving the “woman-as-president” movement forward in a way that Hillary Clinton was never going to. Sarah has opened my eyes to the missing link between past female candidates and the Presidential office:

You have to be a hottie.

I have always looked to the Democrats for eventually placing the first woman into the White House, mostly because there are more women to choose from in that party. But the women to choose from, unfortunately, are women of accomplishment, women of intellect, women of leadership. They are not, by and large, women who got ahead because they were hot. Not Geraldine Ferraro, not Hillary Clinton.

I realize now that America needs its celebrities, like it needs its air. And female celebrities, bar none, are beautiful. Geena Davis, the last woman anywhere near the Presidency, was clearly hot. It hit me between the eyes when I read the NYTimes quote above from a Palin rally. I realized Palin broke through despite her lack of qualifications and turned this former truck driver a feminist. He doesn’t even know he is.

A problem we will face is that women who are hot can find easier successes in America than going into politics. Political success is hard and grueling, and makes you intensely vulnerable. Hot women don’t have to suffer that and they aren’t by definition stupid…so why would they subject themselves to that path?

Sarah Palin has demonstrated to me that political women truly can ignite parties that are ruined, evoke love from the angry, and unite those who feel isolated. I’ve never seen it before from a woman in politics, but I hope to see it again soon (in another Party).  And I also hope that other women, women who hope to see a female president in their lifetime, can refrain from attacking her, and instead simply disagree with her.   There is language that can allow you to express your preference without belittling along the way…an example from someone who is responsible for a lot of damage to her public persona:
“I think Palin will continue to be underestimated for a while. I watched the way she connected with people, and she’s powerful. Her politics aren’t my politics. But you can see that she’s a very powerful, very disciplined, incredibly gracious woman. This was her first time out and she’s had a huge impact.”