A few weeks ago, another set of pictures posted by the critically acclaimed Facebook page Humans of New York (HONY) went viral. This time it wasn’t just a random New Yorker; it was the Democratic nominee for President, Hillary Clinton.
As many of us know, Hillary Clinton has been targeted for being cold and unemotional; however, HONY has allowed us to assume, that maybe, just maybe she’s not what we think. Rather, just a woman trying to make her mark in a male dominated world. The pictures give us a background as to why she is the woman who stands before us today. She’s “cold” because of her past experiences, which have made her realize that as a woman, she needs to have certain boundaries for herself and how she presents herself in the public eye.
Hilary Clinton is no stranger to misogynist remarks. In the first picture, she recounts an incident that happened when she was one of the only women sitting for the LSAT at Harvard. She recalls that “a group of men began to yell things like: ‘You don’t need to be here.’ And ‘There’s plenty else you can do.’ It turned into a real ‘pile on.’ One of them even said: ‘If you take my spot, I’ll get drafted, and I’ll go to Vietnam, and I’ll die.'” These remarks not only showed how hard it was for women in the past to gain education, but also that even if they wanted to move forward, our society has always assumed that this was not their place. Women belonged somewhere else, not in a class room and especially not in a place of authority. We say that times have changed, but have they really?
The day before these pictures were released, Hillary Clinton spoke at the NBC Commander- in Chief forum where she was criticized by Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus. He tweeted, “@HillaryClinton was angry + defensive the entire time – no smile and uncomfortable – upset that she was caught wrongly sending our secrets.” Does a woman have to smile to get her point across? Is it that important? After all, she was speaking about foreign policy and security, a matter that didn’t require a lighthearted mood. It was a serious matter that she spoke about in the way it deserved to be spoken about. Then why was she the target of yet another man thinking she was too “cold” or too “unemotional”. Just because she gave the issue the respect it deserved and didn’t make a mockery out of it, she was said to be “defensive and angry”. How is this acceptable?
You don’t need to be in the public eye to be judged. Every day, ordinary women are put down and kept from utilizing their full potentials. Some young girls are married off or made to sit at home, because that’s where women are traditionally thought to belong. The worst part is that some of these girls start believing the negativity thrown at them. They accept the fact that this is their position in the world and to oppose it would be a grave mistake. Those who do go against them are considered too “educated” or too “free-spirited” and need to be shown their place. Again, a woman is silenced and her dreams crushed.
In the second half of the caption, Hillary Clinton mentions that she had to learn to control her emotions as a young woman in the public eye “because you need to protect yourself, you need to keep steady, but at the same time you don’t want to seem ‘walled off’” – Can you relate to this? I honestly feel that every woman, at least once in her lifetime, has felt that she needed to be less of who she was. Hillary Clinton portrays the struggles that many women have encountered at the work place, or in general societal arenas. We’re always said to come across as “too judgmental” or “too aggressive.” We can never just be who we want to be without the added pressure of having to please others. People will often believe that we need to be less of who we are, show less passion, while simultaneously not being cold or unresponsive. How is that possible? How do you expect women to show who they truly are without someone passing unnecessary comments on their every move. Hillary Clinton concludes by saying that her friends and family would disagree that she is “walled off” or “cold”, but if that’s the perception that people have of her, then she takes full responsibility.
The second picture posted by the HONY page, revolves around what type of behaviours are acceptable for men and what is acceptable for women. Hillary Clinton said, “But it’s hard work to present yourself in the best possible way. You have to communicate in a way that people say: ‘OK, I get her.’ And that can be more difficult for a woman. Because who are your models? If you want to run for the Senate, or run for the Presidency, most of your role models are going to be men. And what works for them won’t work for you. Women are seen through a different lens. It’s not bad. It’s just a fact.” This statement shows that throughout history, men have dominated the political arena and this has made women in politics very cautious of the actions they take in the public eye. What is deemed acceptable for men, is not acceptable for women. It’s the harsh fact. We are often having to make sure that we are representing ourselves in a way that won’t lead to people making assumptions about our personalities. Throughout Hillary Clinton’s campaign, her personality has been everyone’s favourite topic but for what? Why is a man never criticized for not smiling enough? Why is a woman’s character defined by her softness? Why can’t we look at her bravery or intellect, and judge her based on these attributes; attributes that are far more important, especially for a woman in the race for Presidency.
“And I can’t yell too much. It comes across as ‘too loud’ or ‘too shrill’ or ‘too this’ or ‘too that.” – Hilary Clinton includes this in her conclusion. A statement that is a true depiction of the reality that many women face, especially those in the public eye. A woman can never be enough. She is either too soft or too harsh. She will always be under the watchful eyes of bystanders, and every move she makes is seen under a microscope, taken apart piece by piece until nothing of value is left. Why does a woman always have to worry that her every action is open to a public debate, whether she waves her hands at a speech or screams at certain moments. This needs to end. We need to stop looking at women and thinking that she is too much of this or too little of that. This does not just happen in politics, but in other industries as well: models, actresses, and even young girls at school. Women across all platforms are made to feel that they have to have limits. Limits to how much they can show to the world. Limits that make them cautious, which in turn makes them look cold and aloof even if they are not.
In conclusion, this is the 21st century. Women no longer need to feel “too much” or “too little”. We need to feel enough for ourselves, and our actions should not be up for debate. There is no reason for people to scrutinize our every move. Lastly, even if someone says you’re too much of something, ignore them and be the kind of woman you want to be.
Information and images obtained from :
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3780767/Hillary-Clinton-recounts…
https://www.theodysseyonline.com/who-would-hillary-clinton-pick-running-…
http://www.ew.com/article/2016/09/08/hillary-clinton-humans-new-york-wal…
http://www.refinery29.com/2016/09/122584/humans-of-new-york-hillary-clin…
http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2016-09-09/hillary-clinton-lets-huma…