F: Is for Feminists Speaking out!

You would think the prospect of a woman and a working mother in the White House as US vice-president would be welcomed by the feminine gender. The answer to that is a resounding ......NO! The largest American feminist group, the National Organisation for Women, (NOW) wasted no time in issuing a statement, saying it does not endorse Palin because she does not speak "for" women. Yet Palin calls herself a feminist. In The Huffington Post's Sarah Seltzer described her reaction when she heard of Palin's nomination. "I was on the elliptical trainer, and my rage propelled me to the most furious workout I've had in a while … I am appalled by her cynicism and condescension. She is a prominent women sent to keep the rest of us down. She is an absolutist in wanting to ban all abortions, no matter the reason.

Roughly 62 million women will vote this November. What is most ironic is that upper-middle-class white women, historically those most supportive of feminist causes and candidates, have been the most negative about Gov. Palin. Many of these women are personally offended by her selection, fearing it could redefine feminism in ways they would find unacceptable. Anti-Palin forces see her as a dangerous "right-wing extremist" "fanatically anti-abortion", "hard right", "global warming-denying", and a "rabid conservative". How can a mother of five with a disabled baby manage to campaign for the vice-presidency while giving adequate attention to her children? Does it expose a selfish ambition? After all, there's no such thing as a superwoman, and children of driven moms make their own sacrifices. Palin has set off a fierce argument among women about whether there are enough hours in the day for her to take on the vice-presidency, and whether she is right to try.

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. 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." To respond to the Women Against Sarah Palin blog, send an e-mail to womensaynopalin@gmail.com. womenagainstsarahpalin.blogspot.com

Another women wrote: 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.

Eve Ensler, the American playwright, performer, feminist and activist best known for "The Vagina Monologues" just sent out a letter to all her friends and ask us to send it around. She states " I don't like raging at women. I am a Feminist and have spent my life trying to build community, help empower women and stop violence against them. It is hard to write about Sarah Palin. This is why the Sarah Palin choice was all the more insidious and cynical. The people who made this choice count on the goodness and solidarity of Feminists. But everything Sarah Palin believes in and practices is antithetical to Feminism which for me is part of one story -- connected to saving the earth, ending racism, empowering women, giving young girls options, opening our minds, deepening tolerance, and ending violence and war.

I am not a feminist in the truest sense of the word, but Palin has started a war and it is that women including me do not want her to represent us and that is a F.A.C.T.