Women Against Sarah Palin: Bloggers Strike Back

Since Sarah Palin was announced as John McCain's running mate, I've had a pit in my stomach. McCain's gimmicky choice was an obvious attempt to outdo what the Democrats had accomplished in the primaries, that is, by setting historical precedent by narrowing the candidates down to a woman and a black man. McCain's hope was clearly to sway the undecided former Hillary voters to his side by injecting femininity into his campaign.

Although I had initially thought that his plan would fail, it seems that some women, hell-bent on getting a woman into one of the top spots in politics, are pushing Palin's beliefs to the side. The fact is, Sarah Palin is the polar opposite of Hillary Clinton; her views on foreign policy, abortion, education, and the economy couldn't be more different.

Fortunately, for every woman who will blindly vote for the McCain/Palin ticket in the hopes of securing a place for women in the White House, two more are speaking out against Sarah Palin.

On September 3, 2008, two New York women sent an e-mail to their friends (who sent it their friends, and so on). The e-mail called on American women to fight back against Palin:

First and foremost, Ms. Palin does not represent us. She does not demonstrate or uphold our interests as American women. It is presumed that the inclusion of a woman on the Republican ticket could win over women voters. We want to disagree, publicly.

That one e-mail has made it around the world and back, and inspired its authors, Quinn L. and Lyra K. of New York, to start a blog to record responses and share the thoughts of women worldwide. Reflecting upon the number of responses which have poured in thus far, the authors remarked:

As the hundreds of responses above show, Sarah Palin does not represent American women. Her policies fly in the face of everything our mothers and grandmothers have fought for. While some of us may relate to her trials as a mother, we refuse to accept Hallmark tales as a substitute for real political qualifications.

In a recent comment to the New York Times, Alaska delegate Bill Noll had this to say about Sarah Palin and her recent family turbulence: "If this doesn't resonate with every woman in America, I'll eat my hat."

Dear Bill, get ready to eat your hat.

The responses have truly been inspiring and demonstrate that, despite the fact that Palin's struggles resonate with many American women, her politics do not. One 82-year-old Missouri resident responded:

I am an artist who works alone but am a resident of rural Mississippi delta land who is dedicated to community service for the enrichment of lives through the arts. I am 82 years old, and have been such a member of this community for 53 of them. My mother, a North Carolinian, and my grandmother, a Virginian, were both college graduates who devoted their lives to their families and to bettering their fellow citizens. We are environmentally aware and a part of our natural surroundings. But we are "on the internet" and standing for enlightenment and dead set against the likes of Sarah Palin. Thank you for your efforts to consolidate our single voices into a chorus.

A Pennsylvania woman who spent 15 years working as a community organizer takes a stand against Palin's statements about Barack Obama's experience as such:

I can hardly begin to express the depth of my anger at hearing Ms. Palin denigrate the many community organizers I worked with and proudly call my friends. Community Organizers make the world a better place, doing God's work day in and day out, night after night. To hear that convention audience laugh in response to her snide remarks really pissed me off. I didn't realize just how steamed I was until a dear friend (another longtime community activist) sent me an e-mail with this message: Jesus was a Community Organizer. Pontius Pilate was a Governor.

This Missouri woman is surprised at how little Palin respects the women who paved the way for her:

What is remarkable to me about Sarah Palin is that she seems to have no awareness that feminists of previous generations are what have made it possible for her to present her unwed, pregnant daughter without any public shame. As few as thirty years ago, Bristol would have been shipped off to have her baby in private and the child would have been put up for adoption. Because of Roe v. Wade feminists, unmarried women can now have children free from the shame of previous generations. Every generation of feminists has a burden or hurdle to overcome. Seventeen years ago Susan Faludi coined the term "backlash", but at this moment we are experiencing something infinitely worse: it's more like "whiplash". The powerful discrepancy between the image of a woman and what that woman represents is going to result in a dangerous election for all women.

Finally, one Vermont woman's cry against Palin represents succinctly what many women are feeling:

Women! Think! Speak out! Talk with each other! Share the facts about Palin's term as mayor of a tiny city; extrapolate her incompetency at that level to the national and international level. Get out the vote. This is the most important election in many years. Keep Palin out of the White House. Yes, she's a woman, but she's unqualified and pig-headed.

To respond to the Women Against Sarah Palin blog, send an e-mail to [e-mail].

Follow Jillian York on Twitter: www.twitter.com/jilliancyork

Comments

[Tony Sachs - Huffpost Blogger]

I was in college when Jesse Jackson ran for president in 1988. I remember asking one of my friends why he was voting for Jesse. "Because it's time to put a black man in the White House." I said, "That'd be great, but Jesse's not the RIGHT black man. Do you really want a religious leader in the White House, black or white?" My friend thought for a minute, and said, "You know, you're right." I wish it were that easy to convince people that a woman belongs in the White House -- but not just any woman.

[Jillian York - Huffpost Blogger]

Precisely, Tony. I don't understand anyone who would vote based on race or gender alone. I too was excited about the prospect of a woman in office, but chose Obama over Clinton because I thought he was the better candidate. And you can bet I won't go near Palin.

[sherryf13500]

Women need to voice their opinion on this matter. It angers me to think that woman will vote against their own best interest because it is a woman. We are smarter than that. We are better than that. If the woman of America put her in the white house, it will set us back decades. I believe that SP will be tossed aside if McCain wins. Do women really think that they can relate to her. She is a nasty woman that uses what ever she can to get ahead. She is a sneaky person. She is a true politician. Someone we can not trust. Women stand up for the right woman to be in the white house, not just any woman!!!
She would throw you under the bus if you don't agree with her. She is going be thrown under the bus by the republicans. Woman want a woman in the white house to be respected.

[ghenry]

Go women Go!! Now more than ever, this is again your time to show what is right for women and what is not. Sarah Palin is a NOT!!!

[jemiltd]

Finally, the media has gained enough courage to provide some true insight into who Sarah Palin really is, as the New York Times released a front page article this past Saturday, on the real Sarah Palin as a governor, mayor and her character as a person. As women across the country begin to realize that just any woman is not good enough to represent us in the White House, and that every woman in the public eye does not speak for you or me as individuals, I think back to the ongoing myth that was perpetuated during the primaries where the African American vote for Barack Obama was dismissed as being an emotional choice, when, in fact, most seem to forget that many did not vote for Jesse Jackson because he was not the right choice for the White House and he does not -- to this day -- speak for every African American. I think that we are all getting the point; as Women, as African Americans, as people period, that we all need to focus on who will get us back on track as a country, who will not take us into war without valid reason, who is focused on the best interests of this country versus winning at all cost. And, for me, it is not the McCain/Palin ticket.

[ToniChicago]

You know, perhaps the worst thing about the 17 year old pregnant daughter situation is that her mother is a proponant of Abstinence. Not only does it look like Sarah Palin ignored her own message (seemingly giving birth 8 months after eloping), but her daughter also didn't get the message. What does this say about her message? It doesn't work.

[SMP]

Sarah Palin is allowing herself to be used by McCain...............He will toss her in the garbage if stupidly America elects him.


They say women are the swing vote..well women, do you want to be set back 100 years??? ...I am over 50 and I dont. We all have a right to govern our own bodies...NO male shall ever rule mine!!!! And no female dictator will ever make a life changing decision for me.

Vote Obama............he is NOT afraid of strong women!!!!

[Bobrobert]

oink oink oink

[bander55]

I made a comment on a blog that Alito stated that the Constitution could be changed by a majority vote in congress to Bill Moyers. Actuall it was Scalia, my mistake. Caught it! This was in relation to Roe v Wade and theocratizing America. We really do have to watch this. We are in serious trouble if McPalin gets elected!!

[Buki]

I completely agree. Sarah Palin is being used by a cynical Republican campaign to pull the wool over our eyes. I was not a big Hilary fan, but to even mention these two names in one breath is an insult. Palin is an anti-Hilary. She stands against everything that Hilary stands for. they have about as much in common as the Hilton and the Days Inn.
The right wing christian doctrine has always strived to put women in a designated place -- below men literaly and figuratively. Anyone who doubts that should just get a bible and read about that Queen Esther with whom Palin so strongly identifies. In that story, Esther saved her people, but she did it by being subjugated and used by men, (including those in her family who wanted to save themselves.) Men told her what to say, when to say it, what to do and when to do it. Women like Palin have not moved away from that model -- still preach it --and want to return us all to the dark ages when a woman was blamed for rape and a man would claim that she asked for it.
We women have fought too long and too hard to let people like Palin anywhere near a position as powerful as the vice-presidency or (Gasp!) the presidency of the United States. We must unite to fight this male-controlled Trojan moose!

[VOTER]

YIKES..............

My sincere apology................

I had the wrong article.

Mea cupla.

Very sorry.............................. VOTER

[VOTER]

Thank you, Jillian for your interesting article.

Sadly, two brief and thoughtful posts have not been posted. One was and then removed. ????????

It does appear Huffpost has a monitor from McBush's "Straight Talk" Express onboard

and NOT someone from the Citizen Ground -Level Huffpost OffTheBus.