Newswise — With Hillary Clinton's wins in New Hampshire and Nevada, and Barack Obama's in Iowa and South Carolina, and the narrowing race between John McCain and Mitt Romney, racial, gender and faith allegiances " and biases " appear to be entering the fray for the 2008 presidential campaign. Katherine A. S. Sibley, Ph.D., chair and professor of history at Saint Joseph's University and an expert in the role first ladies have played in the White House, comments on the new dynamics gender diversity brings to this history-making election.
"A former First Lady is running for President, and so are an African American, a Mormon, and a Vietnam veteran. All of them represent groups that have been oppressed, stigmatized or otherwise unappreciated in American society.
"Will women vote for Hillary because of her gender? It depends. Apparently, she is a favorite among women " but only just over half of them. Many feminists dislike her policies and are already saying they won't vote for her. This debate is, indeed, refreshing. We've come far enough now that not only can a woman be a strong candidate, but women needn't feel this is their sole chance to have a female elected!
"Of course, as a former First Lady, and more recently, a senator, Clinton is a known quantity, which has its advantages and disadvantages. Among the latter, people see her as a Washington 'insider' - thus explaining some of the feminists' lack of fervor.
"Her position as First Lady offers perhaps the most intriguing hint to what she would be like as President. First Ladies are expected, still, to stay in the background — even if they have been, since Florence Harding's day in the early 1920s, regularly taking a hand in policy making.
"Hillary's refusal to 'bake cookies' suggests that she could be an independent leader, or even a confrontational one, when back in the White House. Her history as perhaps our second most activist First Lady after Eleanor Roosevelt, along with serving in both the opposition and now the majority in Congress, may allow her to understand and influence policy making as few candidates have; indeed, as former senator LBJ once did, a man she clearly admires for his domestic activism.
"Her run continues to underscore the changing role and possibilities of First Ladies. And if she is elected, her husband will need a new title, as well!"
Katherine A. S. Sibley is working on a book entitled Florence Kling Harding: Transition and Tragedy in the White House, 1921-1923, to be published by the University Press of Kansas.
RSS