I wonder - if a woman were elected the next president - if we would see the abuse of women

[ellenrr]

increase, as it seems that racist expressions and actions have increased due to having a Black person for president.

[riqster]

1. Oh hellz yeah. And for the same reason: power.

Any time someone from a marginalized class breaks through a barrier, those in the hitherto dominant class do their best to push the upstarts back down into "their place".

[onecaliberal]

2. That is an interesting question.

To a large degree the corporate media has emboldened the racist hating ignorant to come out from under their rocks and the woodwork. I'm thinking the genie is out of the bottle. They wouldn't be able to help themselves.

[el_bryanto]

3. It seems likely

White Males are losing power as other races and genders get more equal shares of the pie - many of them are reacting badly to this turn of events, by fighting harder to keep their special position.

Bryant

[randys1]

27. Whether it is a Woman, Jewish person or Latino, etc., the reaction will be severe and based

solely in hate and ignorance.

The American Taliban, i.e. teaparty, is a religious organization of radical, violent, ignorant people hell bent on destroying science, all other religions, etc.

[el_bryanto]

30. As far a the Tea-Party go - they are idealogues. We can put up a white male baptist

and they will still fillet him. Witness what they believe about Bill Clinton.

The question is how much of their hatred of the President will filter down into society as a whole; will they jump from wanting to stifle a Barack Obama to stifling and abusing and even killing black people across America? Well they have. Will they do the same thing if a Woman is president? Probably, particularly if she is a liberal or smacks of feminism in any way. Same with Latino or Jewish person.

I don't think they'd have an issue if that Latino or woman were a conservative, particularly if they signaled that they believed that they were anti-feminist or anti-Affirmative action.

Bryant

[appalachiablue]

44. Righto.

[mmonk]

4. Maybe. It's a good question.

[TreasonousBastard]

5. Interesting question. Has anyone studied...

any such effects in countries where women have become heads of state and/or government?

The pointy hood crowd has come out of the woodwork since Obama's election, but perhaps that's just more American politics looking for any excuse to trash a leader.

[yeoman6987]

56. It took England some time to love PM Thatcher

Most likely because she was the first woman. They came around and the next woman won't have it so badly hopefully.

[BrotherIvan]

59. Um...

They don't like Thatcher. Not unless they're conservative crazies. The same people who would like Thatcher are the people who would like Reagan. She did have big brass ones though.

[bravenak]

6. YES.

[LittleBlue]

7. I don't think racist expressions have increased with Obama

We just have more sophisticated social media today. In the old days, a story like Eric Garner could easily be buried as a blurb in a physical newspaper. Now it's caught on camera and shared unfiltered on social media, informing millions of people, before the media can even write a headline.

This allows unfiltered reaction too. Once again, the opinion isn't limited to an op-ed. So racists have a massive megaphone that reaches millions of people rather than just talking to their friends.

Obama's presidency just happened to coincide with the rise of technologically more complex social media.

[Nye Bevan]

8. Are you arguing that if we elect a white man as president,

that would minimize racist and anti-woman sentiments snd actions?

Should we take this into account when choosing a candidate?

[Pacifist Patriot]

10. The OP is raising a legitimate point of speculation...

and doesn't appear to be arguing anything. Your response is making leaps the OP doesn't even seem to be making baby steps towards.

[ellenrr]

19. no i'm not suggesting that. I don't vote for anyone bec.

of their race or their gender or their religion or their eye color.

all things being equal I'd love to have a Black person, a woman - a Black woman, for president.
or for anything else.
I'm tired to death of the prevalence of white faces everywhere, esp since it does not represent the make-up of the country.
also bec. it's boring.
also unfair.
but I vote or desire a candidate based on - to the best I can figure -their policies, and their values, not their skin color or their gender.

I think voting for someone bec. they are Black or female, etc is as nonsensical as NOT voting for them for that reason.

[Posteritatis]

20. I think it's more "we should prepare for that fight if it happens"

The same way that electing the current president was a move in the right direction on racial issues, even if it caused a big chunk of the more backwards parts of society to go completely ballistic. The result's been spectacularly ugly at times; it's also gotten people confronting the scope and depth of contemporary racism in a much blunter way than we'd been seeing before 2008, to say the least.

If a woman's elected as president, a slightly different backwards part of society will go completely ballistic (much as they have been the last few years on other issues). It's just going to happen, in a society where major news networks release "advice guides" to women in Anno Domini two thousand fif-fucking-teen that say outright that a man's infidelity can only be the fault of women.

Is expecting that a good enough reason on its own not to vote for a women? Of course not, not least because witholding a vote for that reason alone is exactly the sort of thing those backwards idiots want to achieve in the first place. I like seeing those types challenged and thwarted, and if their picking a fight on our terms lets some of that happen, then there we go.

[yuiyoshida]

35. I wonder....

If we had a woman President, how Saudi Arabia would respond, being that they treat woman in a crappy way. Would a Woman President be able to drive a car in Saudi , or would she be arrested and tried as a Terrorist?

[Posteritatis]

43. Is it wrong of me to sorta want that election result just to see how badly they'd freak out? (nt)

[yuiyoshida]

45. Heh!

[Control-Z]

49. US presidents don't drive.

They are driven.

[yuiyoshida]

50. Of course this is true ...

And I guess if they wanted to drive, the Secret Service would say, no.

[Control-Z]

51. That's the way I've heard it.

Once assigned Secret Service security, no more driving, along with a number of other things.

[yuiyoshida]

53. Still going back to my original point...

I am not sure how much respect a woman President would get there in Saudi.. I don't suppose any Female World leader would do well there.

[treestar]

22. That's not a fair conclusion from the OP

The idea is that the misogynists will be energized like racists are now, due to the fact that election to the Presidency should not happen due to nature and their basic assumptions are challenged.

[n2doc]

9. Well I can predict if a white male were elected

We would not see an increase in the abuse of white males.

[Nye Bevan]

11. OK. Andrew Cuomo, anyone? (nt)

[n2doc]

12. But I am not saying other rates of abuse would go down, either n/t

[ellenrr]

16. ha, good point! funny how that works. nt

[pipi_k]

13. This begs the question...

have racist expressions and actions actually increased? Or is more attention being focused on them?


OK I recall the summer of 2001 when there seemed to be shark attacks all over the place. It seemed like every other day the news media were reporting on some new shark attack. OMG!!! There's been a horrendous spike in shark attacks!!!


No. In actuality, the number of shark attacks was slightly below attacks occurring in the previous year.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Summer_of_the_Shark


The same thing happened during the 1980s with reports of child molestation being aired everywhere. OMG!!! Child molestation must be on the rise!!! Again, no.

So the point I'm getting at is that the media can manipulate us into believing just about anything.

[Jackpine Radical]

15. You are absolutely right--

"…the media can manipulate us into believing just about anything."

And there you have one explanation for Walker's victories.

And no, I'm not ruling out electoral fraud and a piss-poor campaign (and weak candidate) on the part of the Democrats as additional contributing factors.

Until we figure our a way around the traditional mass media to communicate with people more directly, we are screwn.

[mopinko]

18. i heard an interesting story when i was campaigning up there. "the obey rule"

as in david obey.
dont challenge republicans who are going to win anyway. because you might piss them off, and they might not work with you after the election.
when asked about the rule obey reportedly said- oh that? are they still doing that?

yeah dave, they are.

[prayin4rain]

14. I think attention given to racist expressions has increased

But the number or severity of racist expressions has probably not.

[Aristus]

17. I was thinking the same thing.

And my conclusion: Almost certainly. Angry old white men ain't going down without a massive murder-tantrum against everyone they fear. Group They Fear=Everyone Who Isn't Them...

[ellenrr]

21. I also think there would be an increase. bec

as others have said elsewhere-
White men (as a group - not every single individual white man), as a group they are used to being in power.
This shift in demographics to where white people are now a minority in this country, has a lot of people freaking out.

(Duh - like white people have not always been a minority in the world..)

So yes I think certain white men will freak out if there is a woman elected.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

23. no doubt in my mind, at all.

[Takket]

24. I don't THINK so because...

I think much of the racist hatred targeting Obama is a manifestation of the fact that as a black he represents the entire black race in the eyes of the racist. Those racists have very intentionally been egged on by the GOP on the entitlement issue to believe that Obama wants to take all the money from hard working whites and give it to lazy blacks that just want to collect welfare and not work.

That same dynamic wouldn't exist with a woman president, but on the other hand, I put nothing beyond the GOP and Fauz News. Perhaps when we have a woman President they will find some way of claiming all the women are now out to take money from man. Equal pay legislation perhaps?

[cheyanne]

25. Reasons

The expressions of racism has increased for a number of reasons, including the rise of the internet giving a nationwide platform for racist groups and commentators that before would have been confined to publicizing their views in a limited number of venues.

The expressions of racism have also increased due to the collapse of the economy. In times of economic disorder, people will look for a scapegoat that they have been told are responsible for the collapse.

Now that the meme of "white male oppression" has been started by the right, it will become a major base for opposition for any woman who runs for president.

After seeing the horrific racist reactions to Obama, I expect that a woman candidate would face much the same indignities.

And let's not forget how the media has blamed Obama's personality for all the woes of gridlock: wimpy or dictator, as the situation calls for. For a woman, it will be the same: lesbian ball breaker or mushy kumbya hippie.

Obama's ability to rise above all the racism encourages to believe that a woman can handle just as well the slings and arrows of misogyny.

[Shrike47]

26. Yes, an increase in abuse and the Pukes blaming the woman for it.

Rushbo and the other talkers regularly blame Obama for the apparent increase in racial tension in this country. He's responsible for the watermelon jokes because he insists on being black and presidenting.

[merrily]

28. I have no crystal ball, but my opinion is that we would see an increase.

To some extent, Catholics had to take it on the chin for a rich male WASC. Older people had to take it on the chin for McCain and they will again if Hillary, Warren or Sanders is the nominee, but Republicans nominate someone younger.

It's too bad that is the price women and members of any minority group may have to pay. However, if it is the price, it must be paid. As bad as it is, the alternative is just not acceptable.

[daleanime]

29. I think it kind of depends....

White woman from the corporate power structure, not so much. Black/minority, or someone who might lean left at all, look out!

[tabbycat31]

31. That's a concern of mine

[Doctor_J]

32. only if it's a DEMOCRATIC woman

It's driven mostly by hate radio, so a republican woman or poc would be left alone.

[smirkymonkey]

46. You have a point there!

Even a democratic white male is going to be ripped to shreds by the Tea Party morons for something. Andrew Cuomo will be accused of having Mafia connections, Bernie Sanders will be accused of being a communist. There will be a witch hunt for any minority status that a Democratic President (or candidate) possesses, regardless of sex, race, etc.

Of course, I think a female Democratic President would really unleash the fury of the misogynists that has only been building over the last few years. Anybody who is not a white male will certainly be treated much worse.

[Starry Messenger]

33. Oh, it's going to be floods of misogyny.

Not just on the right either.

[jmowreader]

36. Only if she is a Democrat

If...oh, Carly Fiorina, Nikki Haley or that maniac from Alaska were to get elected, they'd be all "how dare you demonrats say anything bad about a woman?" The same thing would have happened if Colin Powell would have been the first black president.

[Boomerproud]

57. Exactly.

But like everyone else has said...if it's a Democrat she will be eaten alive (figuratively).

[Demeter]

37. I doubt the racism has increased--it's just gotten more press attention

It would be hard to imagine racism getting any more frequent in these benighted states of America.

Although, I am concerned about the official government smearing campaigns against Muslims and Vladimir Putin. Propaganda by any other name is just as poisonous to public discourse.

The same holds for women, of course.

[MrScorpio]

38. Ab-so-freaking-lutely

It'll be blatant.

[AtheistCrusader]

39. We'll see some REALLY ugly shit trot out into the daylight, that's for sure.

[Arugula Latte]

40. Sadly, yes. We can bet on it. The misogyny will be turned up to 11.

[niyad]

41. it is almost guaranteed to happen. whatever restraints these haters might have felt have gone, and

there is no longer the slightest thing holding them back from expressing their hatred. it has been my belief that, if hillary, or any woman, were to be elected, the ugliness and hatred and vitriol we have seen these last six years would seem mild in comparison to what we would see then.

[daredtowork]

42. Well the word "feminism" is already being marginalized...so...nt

[MadDAsHell]

47. Unfortunately I don't see the Democratic party even NOMINATING a woman for 2016...

Based on the vitriol I saw during the 2008 primaries, as well as what I've observed over the last 6 years and especially the last 6 months, there seems to be far more concern for persons of color and their representation in positions of power than there is for women.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

48. Only from the majority of white males.

[sheshe2]

52. Yes!

[Thinkingabout]

54. I don't know if there would be any change, it seems some people abuse simply because they are

Entitled to do so, I seriously doubt they think about who is the president when the notion of abuse starts. This is sad, domestic violence should never happen but we know it does, just being there should not sentence the abused to death but it does.

[DonCoquixote]

55. Yes we would

and, just like Obama has backpedaled away from the Tavis Smileys and Cornell Wests, watch Hillary backpedal from the feminists, because she is a "new" type of woman. Just like Obama's clean-cut image would not save him from the Klan, nor will Hillary's image save her from the witch burners.

[Iggo]

58. Hmm...my guess is that open misogyny...

...would become as acceptable then as open racism has become since we elected a black president.