Among the many obstacles Barack Obama must confront in his quest to be president, surely none is larger than the fact that he represents an ethnic group which has the remarkable distinction of being entirely male.
As the New York Times reported on March 13, "In the primaries and caucuses this winter, too, Mrs. Clinton has enjoyed substantial support from women, while Mr. Obama has increasingly drawn overwhelming votes from blacks." Two days before, AP similarly noted that "by the millions, black voters voted for the black candidate and women voted for the woman." There are many more such stories.
If there were any black women in the U.S., of course, these statements would be nonsense, and the media would be reporting that the women's vote has in fact been split, with white women voting for Clinton and black women for Obama, and women of other races scattered along the spectrum. This would complicate the electoral picture immensely. Instead of having the neat lines of identity politics with which we are now presented, we would have to come to terms with a messy world in which each American has multiple identities which pull in different directions and the sum total of which defies easy labeling. Election coverage would be much more difficult, requiring more thought on the part of both journalists and the public. So we can all thank goodness there are no black women.
By the way, anyone know who this "Michelle" is Obama keeps referring to?
This is the reason nothing ever gets done and America ends up with a "Bush Type" in the White House!
Another thank you - this drives me nuts, I see it all the time!
it is, sadly, often so. "Women" = "white women" and "Black" = "Black men."
Historians do it too.
It always makes me think of Sojourner Truth's great line: "Ain't I a Woman?"
(though her point was more complicated -- she was protesting the rhetoric of Womanly Purity, the 19th Century version of the Feminine Mystique!)
Women in Congress, of whatever background, have a unique and shared eperience of being elected to office. They are colleagues in that aspect alone. Add to that the same party affiliation and shared positions on issues, as well as personal camaraderie, and there is no mystery here - and hopefully no unkind judgement.
I am an Obama supporter. But I respect no woman in Congress more than I do Maxine Waters, a Clinton supporter. Her support diminishes her not one iota in my esteem for her.