Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign is a manifesto for everyday feminism, both in Colorado and the nation. And that’s a good thing. It’s long past time to air out our deep-seated gender issues and redefine what it means to be a woman.
For decades, women have tried to fit into a world standardized around men. In her 2008 presidential campaign, Clinton said she wasn’t running as a woman, but as a great candidate. For 2016, she’s wholeheartedly embraced the fact that she can be both.
Fueled by social media and a progressive cultural environment, feminism has never been more popular — or more populist. And that’s a good thing, too.
The economy is stronger when more women are involved, not just a token few. This is not because women are inherently better than men, but because diversity of thought and experience is better than a narrow view.
Colorado is a top state for women’s workforce participation, which overall added $2 trillion to the U.S. economy since the 1970s. Yet women hold only 7 percent of top corporate positions in Colorado.
In the 2016 presidential race, women are a majority of registered voters in Colorado, and a widening gender gap could tip the scales. Single white women — along with Hispanics, young voters, and working-class white men — are likely swing votes in the election.
Clinton launched her campaign in June with a reference to her historic candidacy, calling her outdoor rally on New York’s Roosevelt Island “a place with absolutely no ceilings.”
To break those glass ceilings, women in Clinton’s generation often had to work twice as hard as their male colleagues to earn half as much money — all while dealing with rampant sexism.
While these glass breakers are celebrated for their firsts, however, they’re also criticized by younger feminists for being the only members of a small and exclusive group.
In 2016, feminism’s greatest challenge is that women must not only be equal to men, but to each other as well.
From the start, the banner of feminism has been held primarily by white women privileged with the education and opportunity to reach the glass ceiling — and make those initial cracks. But women’s suffrage also has strong ties to social justice.
In Colorado, suffragists argued that female voters would address the needs of working people who were ignored by mainstream politicians, according to the Women of the West Museum.
Today, young women are quick to point out that so-called corporate feminists rarely represent the intersection of race, class, gender, and sexual orientation that creates a multilayered experience for many women.
The issue of equal pay, which Clinton referenced in her kick-off speech, is a good example of that intersection. While women in Colorado make 77.9 cents for every dollar earned by men, African- American women make 67.5 cents on that same dollar, and Hispanic women make just 52.5 cents.
If Clinton captures women’s votes in 2016, it won’t be simply because of her gender, but also because she convinces women of all backgrounds and experiences that she’s willing and able to flip America’s patriarchy on its head.
So far, she seems to understand the challenge. Clinton’s “Fighter” campaign video highlights her 1995 visit to Beijing, where she told the U.N. Conference on Women: “Human rights are women’s rights and women’s rights are human rights, once and for all.”
It was one of Clinton’s most iconic feminist moments — and a part of her résumé that clearly illustrates her willingness to fight for all women and girls.
Clinton established herself as a fighter again in her kickoff speech, in which she outlined her plan to restore equity to the middle class.
And she’s planted her feet firmly at the intersection of gender, class, race and sexual orientation in solidarity with women who see feminism as just one facet of a more complex identity.
Clinton is impassioned on racial issues. After the shooting of nine people in a black church in Charleston, S.C., she told the U.S. Conference of Mayors: “Despite our best efforts and our highest hopes, America’s long struggle with race is far from finished.”
She strongly supported the Supreme Court’s decision to legalize gay marriage in all 50 states. “Love triumphed in the highest court in our land,” Clinton told supporters. “Equality triumphed.”
And she includes men in feminism’s promise of equal opportunity by framing universal preschool and child care, paid sick days and family leave, and affordable college as family issues that impact both genders. It’s a timely message: In Colorado, more than 6o percent of children under the age of 6 live in households where all parents work.
Of course, female leadership is no guarantee for passing family-friendly legislation. Colorado has the highest percent of female legislators of any state, and an all-female leadership team in the house.
But with Republicans controlling the state Senate, Democrats were unable to pass bills to create a family and medical leave insurance program, raise the minimum wage, or make it easier for middle-class families to save for college.
Clinton would face a similarly tough battle. But it’s these populist elements of her campaign that may give her the chance to fight it.
Clinton’s everyday feminism is also a contrast to the more individualized brand of feminism promoted by GOP candidate and former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, who recently visited Colorado.
In a campaign speech, Fiorina said a feminist is “a woman who lives the life she chooses.” Unfortunately, that definition only includes women who have the opportunity to make choices.
Eventually, the GOP’s male candidates will need to join this conversation. And that’s a good thing, too. Because while over 80 percent of Americans say they believe in full gender equality, only one-fifth identify themselves as feminists — or people who believe all men and women should have equal opportunities.
Back in 2007, Clinton’s gender-neutral campaign created strong debate among feminists. “Do liberated women want to join the clubhouse or do we want to burn it down?” asked a columnist for The Nation.
The answer is neither. Feminism’s goal is not to enable women to succeed in a man’s world, nor to attack the success of men. Rather, it requires an entirely new paradigm, where success is no longer defined by male experiences, and all human beings have equal opportunities to succeed.
By putting her gender at center stage in 2016, Clinton may finally clarify the conversation — and help voters realize our shared belief in gender equality makes us all feminists at heart.
To send a letter to the editor about this article, submit or check out our for how to submit by e-mail or mail.
