During my childhood, I listened to kids around me explain to parents and peers what they dreamed to be when they grew up; a policeman, a firefighter, or a ballerina were all popular answers. I, however, had a different dream; upon being asked, I would answer, “I am going to be the president of the United States.” This, unsurprisingly, often elicited a few chuckles from the inquirer. I was only a little kid, after all, decades away from even the possibility of running for such an office. What if, however, this amused response had different connotations; what if my gender was affecting people’s perception of my chances to be elected?
As I grew older, I began to realize that I very rarely heard female names on the nightly news when the issue at hand involved politics. Seldom did I read women politicians quoted in the newspapers. Hardly ever did I see female faces on the covers of magazines when freshman senators were running for office. This phenomenon was not caused by the media’s lack of coverage on female authoritarians; it was caused by the fact that very few of such women exist. I began to wonder: why is there such a lack of female representation in the United States national government? Furthermore, what are the implications of this lack of representation for women like myself and for the citizens of this democratic country at large?
In our own country, out of the more than 12,000 Senators and Congressman that have served in Congress, only 276 of these representatives have been women (Women in Congress: An Introduction). This in and of itself is an extremely small ratio. In modern times, women only make up about 15% of American Congress, also a very minute proportion in comparison to the approximate 85% of Congr...
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Moghadam, Valentine M. “Chapter 16: Gender, Politics, & Women’s Empowerment.”Handbook of Politics: State and Society in Global Perspective. Ed. Kevin T. Leicht and J. Craig Jenkins. New York: Springer, 2010. 279-303. SpringerLink. Web. 28 Oct. 2011.
Page, Susan. “Elections Are Likely to Trim Number of Women in Congress – USATODAY.com.” News, Travel, Weather, Entertainment, Sports, Technology, U.S. & World – USATODAY.com. USA Today, 4 Oct. 2010. Web. 09 Nov. 2011.
Swers, Michele L. The Difference Women Make: the Policy Impact of Women in Congress. Chicago: University of Chicago, 2002. Print.
Terrell, Cynthia. “How Can We Get More Women Elected.” Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, Massachusetts. The Center for Voting and Democracy, 2001. Web. 09 Nov. 2011.
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The initial effects of women’s suffrage on the national level was limited. To a great extent it remains limited; women have always been underrepresented at the federal level. In the first election after the 19th Amendment, 25 states failed to elect a woman, (Rothschild, p. 11). Currently, 26 states do not have a women in their congressional delegation, (Gendergap, p.1). There are also six states that have never elected a woman to federal office, (Rothschild, p.2). They are Alaska, Iowa, Vermont, New Hampshire, Delaware, and Mississippi. While women represent 52 percent of the population, they represent only 21 percent in Congress. Thus it can be seen that women still have steps to take to achieve true political equality with men.
In 2008 the first woman was awarded the position of Speaker of the House, and Hillary Clinton ran for president. While Hillary had widespread support leading people to believe that the two different genders had reached equality, there were several that doubted whether or not a woman has what it takes to be a president. The women that came into power that was generally held by men, needed to perform a balancing act. This balancing act was between the characteristics of women and projecting the masculine strength and leadership needed to hold their position (Jenen 14). This problem in society has been continuing on for a long time. In the 1970’s women had no standing in academia. That women were no use to the department they were studying and
On November 1912, women won the right to vote in Arizona. This period of time marked a lot of changes for women and politics in Arizona. Women had to struggle against a male dominated society that influenced their vote despite their new freedom to vote as they saw fit. The right to vote eventually led to a proliferation of women running for local, state, and national offices. Those running for office faced skepticism about their capabilities as a politician, concern over whether they had the drive, intelligence, and strength to face down opponents within the political arena. Despite these obstacles, women have proven to be successful politicians and have infiltrated the ranks of male dominated government systems, both within states and nationwide. Today, women are virtually equal to men as far as their capabilities are concerned, yet are still under-represented in the national political scene. By reviewing a brief history of a few women in politics in Arizona and examining current political themes, a platform is formed that allows an understanding and recognition of the struggles and progression of women in politics today.
The women of the state of Arizona have always played a significant role in politics. Before most women even had the right to vote, two women from Arizona, Frances Munds and Rachel Berry, were the first women elected into the state legislature. Today, Arizona has the highest percentage of women in the state legislature. More impressive is the fact that Arizona is the first state ever to have an all-female elected line of succession. There is no doubt that these five women greatly contributed to making 1997 the "Year of the Woman," where there was a dramatic increase in women's representation in the House and Senate. Why women in Arizona have flourished in the political arena and continue to do so is a question our group will try to answer in our research. More specifically, I will discuss women in current Arizona politics. In reviewing the role of women in current politics today, I will discuss the reasons as to why women have such strong political power in the state of Arizona, and the difference, between the views of voters in Arizona and other states. I will also discuss not only the future of women in Arizona politics but the future of women in national politics as well, and what to expect as the new millenium approaches.
IV. Adult establishment can have no more than 10,000 square feet of floor area and cellar space.
The American Government was designed to represent the people who are voting members of society. When analyzing the makeup of government, one could find that women have become an integral part to American politics. With the rise of female politicians, minority female political leaders still tend to come in low numbers. One could argue that the inclusion of minority females in politics is solely up to women. The responsibility of representing the American population as a whole should not be solely placed on one designated person or group but rather a collective effort of all. Minority females are typically seen at the negative end of statistics rather it is in education, health care, employment and the economy.
Everyone is worried about the future of the social security system. They wonder how long it can last after the year 2030. There are many ways people are suggesting to deal with the problem. Some suggest to raise taxes on social security "In order to continue paying full benefits in 2032 and for about 40 therefore, the law would have to be changed to increase social security taxes by almost one-half, from the current 12.
Feminism, the theory of the social, political and economic equality of the sexes, is a topic today either accepted by many or rejected in a newer version (Mainstream post-feminism). Whether a feminist or not, looking at the number of women involved in Canadian politics it is obvious that equality has not reached this work field, where Canada ranks 63rd in terms of female politicians in the world. Many barriers are stopping women from participating in politics, even in 2016. From having self-doubt in the skills needed in politics, to a culture portraying the “traditional” role of woman as the housewife, Canadian women need to be shown that in today’s society these barriers can be overcome and they can make a difference in their communities as
According to Congressman Richard Gephardt, the social security was not meant to be the sole source of retirement income but rather as a foundation for retirement to give all working Americans a safety cushion. There will be money in the fund until 2029, so distressing baby boomers don’t have to worry. After that money is depleted the revenue from the payroll tax will be sufficient enough to pay 75% of every social security benefit for the subsequent 75 years. But how many burdens should be put on the young and middle age individuals, whose taxes basically pay for government retirement ...
The underrepresentation of female’s interests and values is a global phenomenon as there is no country where women are equally represented on all levels of government. Since most women in the Western World gained the right to vote, there is no area of human life or development sector which is immune from the impact of inequitable gender relations. The central thesis of this paper is that women’s underrepresentation in elected office creates serious problems. This paper begins by analysing the key barriers of women to get into politics, especially into leading positions. It will then go on to the argument that women have special interests and needs, and that male politicians cannot represent those concerns adequately. Additionally, this paper describes further problems in today’s political world, such as women’s identification with
Throughout history, women have always fought to gain equal political rights, but conventional roles kept women from getting enough political representation. Many suffrage groups founded by women challenged the conventional roles of women during 1840 to 1968 with the dream of obtaining equal political representation. In 1919, the nineteenth amendment, drafted by Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton was passed. The 19th amendment has been desired by many women for years. Although the 19th amendment passed and women thought that they were able to be equal in politics, many women did not get equal political representation due to their conventional roles at the time period. Women were not able to achieve high roles in politics, shown through the fact that there has never been a woman president in the history of the United States. The presidency of women did not occur due to the perceptions that generally, women should be protected and hidden, not out in the open and leadin...
One major factor in why women did not reach equality in America in the past century was their underrepresentation in local, state, and federal politics. Between 1917, when Jeanette Rankin became the first woman to serve in the United States Congress, and 2000, only 219 women have been elected as US representatives or senators. Of these, only 28 have been women of color. In contrast, in the 20th century over a thousand men served in Congress, and 132 men of color. In the 106th United States Congress (which met from 1999-2001) only 58 of the 535 legislators were women, and only 18 were women of color. As a result, laws that benefitted women faced heavy opposition before they could be passed. In addition, women made up the minority of Supreme Court justices and presidential cabinet members at every point in the 20th century, and of the 15 presidents...
The two most discussed assassinations out of the four within the position of the United States President are that of Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy. There are many similarities between the two and there are also some differences. There are many similarities associated with the assassination of Lincoln and Kennedy. They were both assassinated on the same day, and the men that were caught for the crime were born a century apart from each other and they were both killed before their trials. A difference between the two men is Lincoln was poor and worked his way to the top and Kennedy was born into a wealthy family in which his father was a large political figure. Both men had different struggles but they were similar in many ways.
Since the initial warming of U.S.-China relations in the early 1970’s, policymakers have had difficulty balancing conflicting U.S. policy concerns in the People’s Republic of China. In the strange world of diplomacy between the two, nothing is predictable. From Nixon to Clinton, presidents have had to reconcile security and human rights concerns with the corporate desire for expanded economic relations between the two countries. Nixon established ties with Mao Zedong’s brutal regime in 1972. And today Clinton’s administration is trying to influence China’s course from within a close economic and diplomatic relationship.
From the beginning of their establishment, the bilateral relations between the United States of America and China have changed throughout the time. The bilateral relations of the two countries emerged from 1970’s with the ‘Ping-Pong’ diplomacy and there have been many pauses in their mutual relations. The US and China enjoyed cooperation in economic and military spheres and the mutual relations grew massively during until the end of 1990’s. The heads of the two states began visiting each other’s countries and the economic ties were tightening year by year. However, the issues of human rights and free speech declined mutual Sino-American relations. The American principle of democracy promotion and human rights protection minimized the Sino- American relations after the Tiananmen Square events in 1989, the US Presidents-George Bush and Bill Clinton- playing a key role in determining the further American foreign policy towards China.