If Hillary had won, we’d all be at brunch right now!”
“None of this would be happening if we had a woman in office!”
Many liberals think statements like these are feminist “wins,” but that couldn’t be further from the truth. There are a lot of things wrong with this country, and these issues would not be resolved by simply electing a woman to a presidential or vice-presidential seat.
Having a woman win a presidential or vice-presidential position in the U.S. would be groundbreaking, but it would likely result in little to no lasting systemic change. “Girl power” is not the savior this country thinks it is.
A lot of people expected Hillary Clinton to take office back in 2016, but we got four years of unabashed white nationalism instead. Trump’s presidency has brought all of the country’s problems even further into light, and they’ve been exacerbated by his COVID-19 response along with the recent resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement. While Clinton might have handled the country’s pandemic response better, we would still be witnessing obscene instances of police brutality and racism with little done to combat it. A Clinton presidency would not have eradicated racism and bigotry from a nation built on white supremacy. Neither will a Biden/Harris ticket.
It was arguably a huge milestone for Kamala Harris, a woman of color, to be picked as Joe Biden’s running mate. Harris is an attorney and senator from California who is pro-marriage equality, wants to combat climate change and has worked to defend immigrants’ rights. Harris is qualified for a vice presidential seat, but she has a very concerning criminal justice record that is hard to overlook. The self-proclaimed “top cop” is known for locking up over 1500 people for marijuana offenses, refusing to investigate certain police shootings and placing trans women in men’s prisons. A lot of people are choosing to disregard this information entirely; anything is better than that damn Cheeto in the White House.
Women in politics (and particularly women of color) do deal with constant sexism both online and in real life. However, there seems to be this skewed notion that women in politics are immune to doing wrong, and that any legitimate criticisms of their views or actions stem from misogyny. There are incredibly brilliant and strong women in politics who will help shape our future, but their gender identity alone isn’t what makes them more qualified or progressive. Alongside these brilliant women, there are also many who could set us back decades in terms of progress if they’re given too much power. Take a look at Amy Coney Barrett: she’s a prime example of this regression, and she was just confirmed to the Supreme Court.
It’s dangerous to assume female politicians are less capable of committing the same heinous acts that their male counterparts do. It’s also misogynistic to reduce the work of women in politics to nothing more than their ability to exist in a typically male-dominated space. Again, there are women in politics who will spark change, but having a woman in office is not the ultimate revolutionary act. Women in power can still cause harm. Women in power can still perpetuate violence against marginalized groups. Women in power can still maintain a watered-down version of the hatred and bigotry Trump promotes. There is still so much to be done.
Micaela Erickson is a junior journalism major with a minor in civic engagement.
