If asked, I, too, would have predicted a black person elected before a woman. I think sexism (and patriarchy) is older and more deeply rooted. But when it finally happened, in '08, it was a damn close call that could have gone either way. Obama did not clobber Clinton in the primaries, he beat her by a rather skinny margin. She was an entirely serious contender; her candidacy cannot be dismissed as ‘symbolic’ like Shirley Chisholm’s. If she had won the primary, she would have prevailed in the general election. And she would not have been a ‘token woman’ whose office was really being run by her politician husband, as was considered the case when George Wallace’s wife was gov of Alabama. No one seriously believes Clinton would have sat back and let Bill pick up where he left off while she served as ‘window dressing’.
On what do you base this opinion? I’m not saying you are wrong, but I’ve never heard this put forward before.
I’m descended from a long line of “po’ white folk;” not necessarily white trash, but not landed gentry, either. I really and truly wish that it could be proven that there are a few black people in my genetic background----I would love to hear what most of my relatives would have to say about that little fact.
Anyway, since I’ve retired, I no longer come into daily contact with black people so I can’t contribute as to any perceived changes in attitude brought about by Obama’s election.
I said most black people in the US have some white in them (because I’ve been around a bit, and I’ve seen very few people who are really dark), not that most white people have some black ancestry.
After a while, though, it was obvious that she had lost, she simply refused to admit it. Also, it’s quite possible that she would have lost to McCain, though had she done that it would have been because of her shortcomings as a candidate, not her vagina.
I thought it was common knowledge that most black Americans have some white ancestry. But the reverse is not as true, because it was always the case (and still is, maybe to a slightly lesser extent) that ANY black ancestry means you’re black.
One source of the white ancestry of many blacks were the Irish slaves that were brought to the United States to breed with the black men. There are several sources for information on this. One of them is WikiopediaAnswers.com
According to a report that I heard on one of the televisions news sources – probably MSNBC – the fastest growing “racial” group in the United States is simply “Mixed.” I think it’s cool. As much as I enjoy diversity, I would give it up in a minute just to have these stupid barriers down.
To illustrate my meaning, remember the first woman astronaut? presidential candidate? CEO of a major company? Senator? Sally Ride was the first woman in space. I would venture most folks know her name. According to Wikipedia, there have been 63 female astronauts. Now, a woman going into space isn’t headline news. It may be a news item, but not in the same sense that Sally Ride was.
I don’t have a problem with women making choices regarding their professions and child bearing/rearing and those choices affecting it appropriately. I do have a problem with society saying “since you bear children and take on primary care responsibilities, we will not allow any one with a vagina to hold an important position.”