Greetings,
Although I did not hear a women comment on Obama’s State of the Union address, Ms. Magazine provided an astute commentary. On the positive side, Obama acknowledged some women who have performed deeds of valor. He mentioned Desiline Victor, a 102-year-old grandmother, who stood in line for six hours to vote and Nurse Menchu Sanchez who saved 20 babies during Hurricane Sandy.
He urged the House to pass the Violence Against Women Act that was recently reintroduced in the Senate. He also said that women should not have to live in fear of domestic violence or workplace discrimination. He urged equal pay for women. Good for him!
On the negative side, Obama said that “wives, mothers & daughters” should not have to fear violence, casting women into a position of inferiority in which we are defined by our relationships.
He did not mention a national child care initiative for working parents, which is sorely needed.
We need a President who is not caught up in the “us-them” dichotomy, and who views women as equal human beings. A tall order, it seems. I imagine a woman president could manage to create a neo-humanist administration. However, it is obvious, by all the ridicule and stereotyping that Hillary had to undergo when she ran for president, that the day we will have a woman president is not in the near future. Such a pity!
http://msmagazine.com/blog/2013/02/14/state-of-the-union-takeaways-for-womens-issues/