Yesterday I read this beautiful article by Susan Faludi, who I know can be extreme at times but this was really worth reading. It is called Second-Place Citizens and is an Op-Ed in the New York Times. I recommend reading it because it actually gives some really good insight into why there are so many women that have gotten so upset over the Democratic primaries. I, for one, am part of those women who feel like our voices are not being heard and who fear for feminism. In fact, today at work two of my coworkers were talking about Hillary’s speech at the DNC last night and I knew that one of them had not heard it and was just speaking with the same vitriol that we’ve been hearing in the media for months now. The best part is when I bring that up they can’t speak because obviously the things they have to say are inappropriate for work. It is so frustrating to continue to live in a misogynistic country and yet have everyone in denial about it. The worst part is that *so* many women today choose to ignore this and therefore men are not held accountable. When will we learn that the battle for equal rights is not over? In fact it’s not even close.
Sadly it is people like those that I work with who make me consider voting for Ralph Nader yet again, there is a man whose values I can stand behind. Who lives up to what he believes in. Who is not a part of the political machine. Despite what Barack Obama touts he has been an extremely successful politician working within the framework of the Democratic party’s politics. If it weren’t for Hillary’s call to vote for Obama, I wouldn’t give this a second thought, my vote would be for Nader. But if she can so gracefully step down and give such a beautiful speech I will consider the Democratic nominee. I am far from blindly accepting because on principle I surely do not approve misogyny or the dog-whistle tactic that Obama used in the primaries but she made a good point about whether I really want another Republican in the White House for another 4 years. It’s a tough call, the future of the country or continued misogyny. More than likely I suppose I will side with continued misogyny but it is severely disappointing to have to make that choice.