I love men. My Dad is my forever hero, I have a supportive husband, three amazing brothers, and I am surrounded by incredible colleagues, friends and relatives who are my biggest professional advocates -- I would even call them "feminists" in their view of women's empowerment. But we still have a problem. For all of the progress women have been making in our professional and personal lives, the birth control debate over the past week highlighted the still-unequal voice that women have on the issues -- even those that relate to their own health and well being.
As I was watching my regular news (the Daily Show and Colbert Report), Jon Stewart highlighted a clip from the Fox broadcast of Hannity, featuring an all-male forum in stadium seating discussing the Administration's birth control rule. (I was on the treadmill at the time and almost fell off.) The focus group consisted of 20 "diverse" men being interviewed by the male Sean Hannity. Fast-forward one day to a House Oversight Committee hearing where, yet again, not a single woman was in the room to testify alongside the five male witnesses.
Now, in "politics as usual," this is sadly not an unusual sight. But as I myself sat on Fox Business Channel talking with three conservative men in a debate on the same topic, it suddenly struck me that the entire conversation was more than a little bizarre. It felt like a modern day episode of Mad Men, with a room full of male ad execs discussing how to sell a pair of panty hose. I had these same men trying to argue with me about a medication that MY doctor has prescribed as a treatment for polycystic ovaries and infertility. I have to tell you, boys, if you are willing to saddle up in cold stirrups while trying to casually discuss your favorite method of appeasing menstrual cramps, you have earned a place at the table to discuss women's hormones. I am, however, certain that you will never see a panel of women invited to debate vasectomies, prostate issues, or erectile dysfunction with anything approaching the same presumption of authority.
Most places you look, the numbers for female representation are bleak -- particularly in the news media. In the case of Fox Business I was the lone female of the 11 guests invited to talk about the birth control debate. Overall, 65% of the guests appearing on all of the cable networks to discuss this issue were men. But, before my red-headed temper takes over, I'll offer a perfectly logical explanation as to why there are so few women talking -- because when men make the editorial decisions, they dominate the conversation. According to a recent report by the Women's Media Center, women hold only 28.4% of news director positions. In radio, it's a mere 18.1% of news directors -- and of the "Heavy Hundred" top radio personalities, only 13 are women. So, gentlemen, don't stop opening doors... just don't forget the doors to the newsroom and the boardroom.
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Seriously, the one problem that is not being discussed is the very real needs of children, especially special needs children. The expectation has always been that if anything gives, it is the mother's time, work, and career. "Mommy track" is a derogatory term to most men, and far too many women, and there is not "Daddy track" or "Parent track." Biologically speaking, women invest more in children than men do, so the majority of men tend to be more likely to walk away. Before women get real representation, the care of children must be made fairer--and far to many old, white, privileged won't even think about that.
There were several congress women on that committee but since their party was not in power they could not choose the witnesses. The debate was not really about birth control itself. It was a debate over certain institutions wanting a moral exemption to providing it to employees via insurance policies. The party in power is hostile to the people who denied the exemption and the Affordable Care Act as a whole. It's much bigger than gender.
The debate over getting birth control coverage itself was already won before this argument even started. Women would be wrong to assume men don't care about women's issues or don't push policies that address to address them. Most states already had the mandate in law along with church exemptions.
This article did not provide any unique perspective for you having claimed the place at the heart of the pro life movement. You might be from the south but you don't provide any special insight on these issues.
The government's job is to ensure and protect the rights of people.
Women of all relgious and financial stripes will be voting in November -- Republican and Democrat alike -- and the issue of birth control, abortion and women's reproductive health in general will be a topic that will prove toxic for any Republican crazy enough to add it to their platform or campaign stump speech. We are already seeing what is happening to Rick Santorum. I discount those women of the truly evangelical bent who see nothing wrong with this tortuous stand, but rather rely on the middle-of-the-road or independent voters who will be so critical in the fall.
Republicans have opened a hornet's nest on this topic, and it's likely as not going to come back and sting them rather badly.
It's very much like the 3/5 compromise enshrined in our Constitution - white men debating how much of a "person" to count those humans deemed "property" for all other purposes. Preposterous, but enshrined in our nation's Constitution for almost a century.
Let's hope we can dispatch this one a bit faster.
Men need to expect more push back and sarcasm like that in Georgia. If you think you are an authority on birth control, well then I've just become an authority on erectile dysfunction and vasectomy.