If I’m the first female president, I’ll be severely disappointed

I have wanted to work in the White House since my junior year in high school. At first, I wanted to be a speech writer, like Toby Ziegler on The West Wing. My senior year, I was torn between being the White Press Secretary like C.J. Cregg, or the Chief of Staff like Leo McGarry, also from The West Wing (The West Wing is the best political show and you can’t change my mind). Then my parents realized I was serious about politics and tried to convince me to go into comedy writing (story time: my mom is a HUGE fan of Stephen Colbert. We got tickets to a live taping of his show “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” last summer while we were visiting my grandparents on Long Island. We got up at the crack of dawn to get on the train into New York City and we got in line at 3pm, although they weren’t letting people in until 5pm. We had to wear nice clothes, like long-sleeve shirts and long pants, and it was really hot out since it was in the middle of July. Word of advice: If you want to see a taping of his show, go in the fall or the winter-trust me. You’ll thank me later. Where was I? Oh, yeah, the taping itself was really fun, but I think my mom gave up on convincing me to be a comedy writer when the person briefing the audience said the two following things: don’t ask about internships with the show and, no, employees aren’t able to bring their families here for tapings-it’s only fair they go through the same process as everyone else. Yeah, the only reason my mom wanted me to be a comedy writer was because she wanted to be able to watch live tapings of the show whenever she wanted. That didn’t make me feel used at all.) 

To make a long story short, I realized none of these positions were for me. 

The idea of being president (not like President Bartlett of The West Wing-I can’t compete) was a possibility that I was toying with for a while. But I knew that no matter how much I tried to get voters to like me and my ideas, the public would scrutinize me because I’m a Jewish, bisexual woman from Appalachia who doesn’t put up with bullshit. I would be honest and blunt, but I would try to provide help and assistance for those who needed it. Actually doing your job? Pssh, that’s for losers-politics is about profiting off of marginalized groups fighting with each other while we sit back and count our money. I want this long-standing culture of apathy to change.

I know there are plenty of women out there who feel the same way I do about running for office, or being involved in politics in any way. But we are judged, our lives are combed through extensively, our policy ideas are torn to shreds? Why aren’t women elected as easily as men? Well, I have created a set of graphics describing why, and I’m going to explain them as best as I can.

First, let’s talk about the origin of this whole mess:

Why does this happen?

So, some women voters believe that women aren’t good candidates because they don’t think other voters will support them in the general elections? Hmm, that sounds reasonable.

We have established that this is a circular argument. But let’s take this a step further:

That was more than one step further, but that’s not the point. Why does this keep happening? Where is the disconnect between wanting a woman president and actually electing her into office? The section between “women demanding change” and “women voters doubting a woman can win the election” is where the problem lies in this system. What are the causes of this doubt?

Let’s relate this to Robinson’s own life experiences. She encounters male and female judges who criticize her appearance and her personality more so than talk about her performance and the quality of her jokes (138-145). She ties this to how people perceive Venus and Serena Williams, tennis players that are confident in their abilities, yet are portrayed by media outlets as “too arrogant, too cocky”, versus John McEnroe, a tennis player who is entitled and throws tantrums at every slight inconvenience, yet he’s portrayed as a “lovable national treasure” *insert eye-roll here* (143).
          Elana, how on earth does any of this connect with you wanting to be the President of the United States? If women are expected to get anywhere, not just in politics, we have to stop this cycle. And there’s a way to do it. Just follow these steps:

1)    Forget the whole system. Mark an “X” through it. Throw it away.

2)    If you believe a woman can make a difference, or even if you think they can do something good for themselves, support them no matter what.