I have a humble rebuttal to last Tuesday's column "Politics Needs Better Female Role Models" by Sami Main. I reject the premise that today's young women do not have anyone to look up to.
Women are more prominent than ever. Ms. Main turned a blind eye to some of the strongest and most brilliant minds of the past century.
"Young women today often have very little appreciation for the real battles that took place to get women where they are today in this country. I don't know how much history young women today know about those battles." Guess who said that? It was none other than former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.
Main had it out for two very specific women: Sarah Palin and Michele Bachmann.
She writes, "Sarah Palin took that to mean being more rogue, more every-woman and more detached from the news media. She basically became a complete caricature of herself."
To be upfront, the quote warrants a very finite amount of merit. Palin is by no means a stupid woman, but her attempts to paint herself as an "average Jane" often make her come across as a simpleton.
Bachmann falls into a similar category.
"Bachmann is just another example of how important extremes are to this nation. If someone isn't making a scene, they're not going to earn press. And I think we all know Bachmann likes a scene. Women in politics will not be listened to unless they are causing a ruckus - that is a little absurd to me," she continues.
Although she may have a point, the behavior of these two female public figures is not exclusive to women. Instead, it describes the behavior of almost everyone in politics and entertainment.
To gain political traction, you need showmanship. Both men and women put on a charade to be palpable to the American public, even though it might leave some scratching their heads.
Palin certainly has the star quality with a huge following, and Bachmann says some statements that fly out of nowhere. But it brings publicity, which is what they desire.
However, Main discounts the serious women who exist outside this media "circus" and deserve credit for their achievements.
In the 1980s, Margaret Thatcher was the first woman to lead a Western political party and the first female prime minister.
During her term, she battled the former Soviet Union and came down on power-hungry labor unions, earning her the nickname "Iron Lady." She also survived an assassination attempt during her time in office.
For something a little closer to home, what about Hillary Clinton? She is intelligent and respectable, her husband notwithstanding. Only four years ago she hit the campaign trail as a senator from New York. Although she lost the bid for the White House, she is the third woman to hold the position of Secretary of State.
We cannot discount women like Condoleezza Rice, Ruth Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Janet Napolitano, who are all great examples of how far our country has come in accepting females as political leaders.
Politics aside, women play prominent roles in society throughout the media, entertainment and business (such as Meg Whitman of eBay Inc., Indra Nooyi of PepsiCo Inc. and Irene Rosenfeld of Kraft Foods Inc.). Right now is a great time to be a woman.
Gents, our female counterparts deserve our respect and appreciation for what they accomplish. Ladies, do not ever forget that these women broke the glass ceiling, increasing your opportunities as you embark on your careers.
Nicholas Butler is a journalism sophomore. His column appears on Wednesdays.
