Category Archives: Women’s Activism

Money & Politics – Picking A Celebrity Senator?

A lot of women and women’s rights groups would like to see a woman picked for Hillary Clinton’s New York Senate Seat. After all, only 16 of 100 Senate members are women. Having one of them picked for Secretary of State would be ironic and bitter sweet if it caused our ranks and representation to go down even lower in Congress. So there is a great rallying cry among women’s groups to pick a woman for Hillary Clinton’s Senate seat.

But will it happen? And which woman?

There are some good ones out there.

Two names which have been floated are scrappy and talented upstate Albany-area Congresswoman  Kirstin Gillibrand and Nydia Velazquez, described as “a twofer,” since she is a woman and a Hispanic.  But they are less well known, so might best be described as “dark horses”.

Two national women’s groups have urged Democratic New York.Governor David Paterson to name Manhattan Rep. Carolyn Maloney. Time Magazine has called Maloney a “tenacious, resilient legislator.” The Village Voice characterized her as “a tiger in the House on every dollar due New York.” Maloney is both an advocate for women and strong on the economy which she has made her specialty.

Maloney is not only articulate and effective but women believe “she gets it.” In 2008, Maloney published a book on women’s issues entitled “Rumors of Our Progress Have Been Greatly Exaggerated: Why Women’s Lives Aren’t Getting Any Easier — and How We Can Make Real Progress for Ourselves and Our Daughters“ In the book, Maloney argues that progress for women has stalled and offers recommendations for resuming their advance toward full equality.

But whoa!

There seem to be an evergrowing number of wanna be’s out there. Actress Fran Drescher, The Nanny, wants the appointment. Yes, really.  And some find her very politically savvy and committed.

And Caroline Kennedy………iconic daughter of legendary Camelot star couple, JFK and Jackie, niece of former N.Y. Senator Bobby Kennedy, who held the same seat……gave the Guv a call and discussed the position, although no one is at liberty to repeat what was said.

But it did get all the politicos and their followers’ attention. A political acquaintance of mine, male,  has invited me to a new Facebook group, sporting a photo of Caroline Kennedy with the caption splashed across it, “Entitlement we can believe in,”

“The woman has never run for office in her life. We have no idea how she’d fare on the campaign trail, or how well she could stand up to the electoral process. She simply picks up the phone and lets it be known that she just might be up for having one of the highest offices in the land handed to her because — well, because why? Because her uncle once held the seat? Because she’s a Kennedy? Because she took part as a child in the public’s romantic dreams of Camelot? I’m not quite sure…”

Senator Ted Kennedy, her uncle, is said to be feverishly working the phones for her, hoping to continue the family dynasty. ( See article below.) And many of us are very empathetic with the Kennedy’s magical, often inspiring but tragic past. But is that enough of a foundation to be appointed Senator?

Another with his  hat in the ring: Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, who served as the Clinton administration’s secretary of Housing and Urban Development and who, apparently seeks to carry on his own family’s political dynasty. ( There’s a bit of a family feud between ex-inlaws Kennedy and Cuomo, but that’s another story. I thought I’d give you a heads up because all the gory details are bound to hit the blogs, or, at least the tabloids).

According to Time magazine:”A Dec. 9 Marist poll found that 25% of New York residents think Paterson should pick Kennedy vs. 25% favoring Andrew Cuomo, with the rest either divided among other candidates or “unsure.”

Also, longtime city teachers union President Randi Weingarten recently contacted Gov. Paterson about the seat and the Governor said he would consider Weingarten as well.  So he has a lot to think about.

But here’s the rub: whoever takes Clinton’s seat would have to face voters in 2010, to fill out Clinton’s term, and again in 2012, for re-election.  That means, almost from the day he or she enters office he or she will have to start running…..and running and running…. and raising lots of very big bucks.

So, all things considered, it appears that money, the ability to raise it, monied connections and being linked into deep pockets and piles of money are going to weigh heavily on the scales of who is the best Senate selection for New York .

Who do we think will best meet that criteria?

Is the richest hopeful really the one most credentialed to hold office….. considering that one of the credentials appears to be money?  Stay tuned.

Edward Kennedy helps niece Caroline to join senate

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The Larry Summers Dust Up: Women vs Paleolithic Role Models

I belong to a number of women’s groups and one such group, non partisan The New Agenda is, or at least some of its members are,  extremely exercised over the nomination of Larry Summers for anything. (Summers, you may recall, was nominated by President-elect Obama to be the next head of the White House’s National Economic Council to coordinate economic policy making).

Summers may be a whiz at economics ( though some people question even that – see Larry’s Summer’s Judgment in Forbes), but he is pretty much a dud, not to say a disaster, with his people skills.

In 2005, Larry Summers, when he was Harvard University’s President, put forth his theory that women are genetically inferior to men in math, science and engineering. That, he declared, was why women were under-represented on the faculties of hallowed institutions that taught these subjects.

Forget that there is zilch research to support this.  Forget that bias, gender barriers and care-giving for their families have been identified and well documented as the historic and universal barriers to women’s professional progress.

Larry Summers thinks we’re stupid. Or more accurately, riddled with genetic blind spots that leave us incapacitated when it comes to his favorite subjects: math, science and engineering. No wonder no woman has made the cut to become a tenured female professor of mathematics at Harvard in its 370-year history. Must be that genetic deficiency popping up in 100% of the pool of women academics who might have been considered.

Of course, Summers got into major hot water.  He was essentially ousted from Harvard.  And now women, and many academics are looking forward to Summer’s elevation to this high post in the Obama Administration with about the same anticipation they would have if being dragged to the dentist for a full root canal.

Let me fill in a few blanks on Summers.  According to the Boston Globe , Summers had a brief and troubled stint at Harvard. “Nearly from the start, the world-renowned economist managed to alienate faculty with his autocratic management style. And then, in early 2005, he struck the match that ignited the firestorm. In suggesting that women lacked the same “intrinsic aptitude” for science as men, Summers opened a path for his eventual ouster. In a February 2006 meeting, two weeks before Summers resigned, professor after professor stood to tell him they lacked confidence in his leadership. Not a single one rose to his defense during the two-hour meeting.”  Without a lot of choice, Summers exited Harvard, on a sour note.

But…..you’ve probably seen those movies where all’s quiet in the graveyard then at the stroke of midnight some scary creature pops up from the grave to roam the earth again. He’s back!

Summers’ return and pending reinstatement to the highest positions of the land has caused a bit of a divide among women and womens’ groups.

Some high profile women like Wendy Kopp, chief executive and founder of Teach for America, think Summers is a great guy despite some “ill chosen words“. Ruth Marcus in the Washington Post comes to the conclusion Summers may have been right after all, we really are dumb.

Marcus caps this off by concluding: “Summers was boneheaded to say what he said, in the way that he said it and considering the job that he held. But he probably had a legitimate point — and the continuing uproar says more about the triumph of political correctness than about Summers’ supposed sexism.”

I hardly think that opposition to the position of girls being innately inferior in some fields amounts to “political correctness”.  I think failing to do so amounts to political cowardice. Or lack of discipline to read the weight of scientific data on the subject instead of cherry picking any shred of variance which may make Summers look like less of a Paleolithic anachronism. I’m pretty much a believer in former Clinton Secretary of State Madeleine Albright’s remark:”There’s a place in Hell reserved for women who don’t help other women.” And I can’t see that supporting Summers by supporting the thesis that women are genetically stupid is much of a help.

Many other women have lined up to fight Summer’s appointment to any office. ( Out of our sight and back to the graveyard was the general thinking.) Nonpartisan group, The New Agenda, said appointing Summers to that top Cabinet post would be a “grave mistake.”

Sensing an opportunity to distract women’s groups and seeking to focus attention elsewhere, it seems some set out rather cynically to instigate a battle of pro and con quotes from women’s groups or prominent women on the suitability of Summers for such a high profile office. The goal, it seems, was to encourage controversy and a general slug fest among women’s groups on the Summers question.

I think this would be the ultimate magician’s hat trick, to get us to look over there, while Larry Summers is being pulled out of the hat, over here. It is not hard to get women’s groups bickering among themselves.  The challenge, I think, is to hang together, to have a “big tent” of women; to try to work united and in the same tent.  Those of us who are Democrats did that when we stood up for Sarah Palin.  I think the way forward is not to critique each other but to critique and hold accountable Paleolithic men like Larry Summers and call into question the judgment behind appointing him and the ramifications to women and academics of what he stands for which the Obama vetting team clearly doesn’t get.

If you agree, why not fire up your email and let the Obama team know, even if Summers is outstanding in his field, he is a poor choice for high office and as a role model.  When Obama said “We don’t have a Red America and a Blue America, we have a United States of America,” just as we don’t have a white America and a black America, he might well have said, “We don’t have a male America and a female America, we have a United States of America.”  This is his chance to prove those aren’t just words, they are a standard he will live by, including in his appointments to high office.

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Women’s History Needs A Home – Will You Help?


The goal of a national museum devoted to the contributions of women to our country needs an extra push from all of us. We know Congress never does anything without an elbow from their constituents, so let’s give them one.

In a year when many women have made history, Members of Congress have the opportunity to recognize women’s successes by passing House Resolution (H.R.) 6548 and Senate bill S. 3528, giving the National Women’s History Museum a permanent home.

Representative Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY) introduced H.R. 6548 with bipartisan support on July 17, 2008. On September, 22, 2008, Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) introduced S. 3528 with bipartisan support. Now, we’ve launched the

Right Here. Right Now. campaign so that you can make your voice heard on Capitol Hill. Help us urge Congress to pass H.R. 6548 and S. 3528 immediately.

·     Tell your Representative to pass H.R. 6548 and S. 3528 now. We want a location on the National Mall.

( The American Indians have one and it is beautiful and their history and it’s telling in images and displays makes a powerful, and for me anyway, unforgettable impact, beyond what words alone can do.  I salute American Indians and their achievement but women are over 50% of the country; surely we deserve one, too.

· Show your support by displaying our Right Here. Right Now.badge on your webpage ( This link gives you a simple code to paste in.  The badges look like this:

Learn More:

· Read the Bill(H.R. 6548) ; Read the Bill (S. 3528)

The National Women’s History Museum(NWHM), founded in 1996, is a nonpartisan, nonprofit educational institution dedicated to preserving, interpreting, and celebrating the diverse historic contributions of women, and integrating this rich heritage fully into our nation’s history. Until legislation passes in Congress designating a permanent museum in Washington, D.C., the NWHM promotes women’s history through its temporary exhibits, special events, Cyber Museum, and online educational materials.

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Join Our Call For A Presidential Commission On Women


It's our time
If not now, when?
sign the petitionsend to 5 friendstell us your issuescommission FAQ

Dear Friend of AdvancingWomen.com,

We are excited to tell you about an important new effort AdvancingWomen.com has joined
- and we are asking for your support and participation.

Along with WomenCount, a nonprofit grassroots organization, AdvancingWomen.com is
calling on President-elect Obama to create a Presidential Commission on Women
in his first 100 days. Please click on the link on this page to sign the petition
to support this initiative.

No one understands better than all of us that women have been the center of the
conversation in this election – the good and the bad of it. It’s our job to make sure
that’s where we stay.

Women, and gender equality, have been among the biggest stories of this election.
And the lessons that have emerged from this campaign are critical to how women
move forward in politics, in policy, and in our society.

In 1961, President Kennedy convened the Presidential Commission on the Status of Women.
Eleanor Roosevelt was the first chair.That was 47 years ago, and although we have
come a long way, we still have far to go.It’s time to seize the moment and do it again.

The new Commission will bring together the best thinkers across all political parties,
generations, backgrounds, ethnicities, and industry sectors to make change happen
where we know we need it. It will be up to the Commission to define the substance
and scope of its work. With your help, we will make sure it’s done right, and that the
Commission’s work is carried out.

Your part, now, is to sign the petition,and then forward it to your entire list of contacts
with a personal note. The more names we can get on our petition, the easier it will be to
accomplish our goal.

Help us make this happen. It’s our time!

Thank you for your participation.

Gretchen Glasscock
AdvancingWomen.com
sign the petitionsend to 5 friendstell us your issuescommission FAQ
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Congratulations to Bev Perdue, North Carolina’s first woman governor!

Feminist Law Professors ; Congratulations to Bev Perdue, North Carolina’s first woman governor!.

AdvancingWomen.com joins Feminist Law Professors in giving our …..

Congratulations to Bev Perdue!

Charlotte Observer account of her victory here.  Excerpts below:

Lt. Gov. Bev Perdue rode a national tide of Democratic support Tuesday to become the first female governor of North Carolina.

Perdue, who has held office in Raleigh for nearly a quarter century, was propelled into the governor’s office despite a sweeping drive across the state and the nation for new faces and change. …

… Perdue’s victory makes her the 30th woman to serve as a governor in the United States. She rarely spoke about the possible precedent but won in a state that didn’t officially pass the constitutional amendment giving women the right to vote until 1970. In the 19th century, the first bill allowing women to vote was sent to the state legislative committee on insane asylums.

–Ann Bartow

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State Of The Female Nation: Election 2008

As we look back at this long, I think exhausting, electoral season, I guess we can feel lucky we have a democratic process, with a peaceful instead of bloody change of regimes. None-the-less, I can’t help feeling that the light it  has shone on the prevailing attitudes towards and treatment of women candidates has illuminated some dark places in our hearts and has been, at least metaphorically, both brutal and bloody.

No one has addressed this better or managed to make more incisive points than the esteemed Lynette Long or other guests who’ve posted on her blog.  Some, I believe, have really gotten down to some root causes and  effects which I’d like to share with you, from a  non-partisan, but pro-woman standpoint.

Artemis March in a guest post Lynette Long: SARAH PALIN: A RORSHACH FOR FEMINISTS discusses where women stand today, both with how they are portrayed in the media, and their standing as candidates in the political parties:

“The truth is this: A woman can’t deal with sexism solo. She has to have a Greek Chorus to amplify, interpret, and spin with, for, and about her. And, after 40 years, there is no Greek Chorus for women at the national level. Nada. Zip.

  • There is no feminist voice in the Old Media, let alone a feminist perspective informing all the media. The media are totally androcentric in their framing of all issues. Women who are allowed face time either see the world as their male bosses do, or tread very carefully with their small departures.
  • The DNC never had Hillary’s back, never became her Greek Chorus. They not only betrayed their best candidate in 75 years, but they also betrayed the many constituencies for whom she has a long record of fighting.

After 40 years, feminist organizations and spokeswomen have not been able to create a cultural context that would make it impermissible to attack women and perpetrate the kind of vicious misogyny directed at Hillary Clinton and now at Sarah Palin. It would be a tall order given that patriarchy has been organizing our social world and our culture for 5,000-6,000 years. The only good news here is that the behavior of the DNC has made it transparent to many of us that we’ll never get there by being an appendage of the DNC and held hostage to Roe.

If establishment feminists had any real clout with the DNC, Hillary would be taking the oath of office on January 20. Rather than attacking women candidates who don’t fit their precious self-image, leftist so-called feminists and those wondrous postfeminists should get over themselves. If they had done that a year ago, Hillary would be on her way to the White House, and we wouldn’t be in this mess of opting between which set of candidates scares us less.

Sarah Palin is a rorschach for the Left and for feminists. She has exposed the boundaries and implicit rules for inclusion in their clubs, thereby sparking a much needed dialogue about what feminism is and can be. She has thrown into relief the limitations of establishment feminist strategies, and blown open the door to alternative strategies. Sarah Palin arrived on the national scene at the moment when many Hillary supporters were recognizing an old political truth: If you can’t walk away from the table, you have no bargaining power. If you have no alternatives, you will get nothing but crumbs.”

And speaking of alternative strategies, Greta Van Susteren came up with an alternative strategy on Lynette Long: ARE YOU KIDDING??? FROM GRETA ON GRETAWIRE.

“I can’t get over it….are they nuts?”, Greta asks about women who portray themselves as leaders for women but proceed to attack other women running for office.

Their inertia (and now criticism of those who disagree with them) has made them utterly irrelevant.    I will give them credit for starting the ball rolling for women (that was yesterday) but now (today) they are in the way.  Now they are putting a stop on women.  They are hurting women.  I can’t figure out why….

Real Feminists are DOERS — working ! Role models! Taking a chance!  Showing everyone women can!  And yes, Feminists are Governors and Governors are Feminists! Feminists are not women drinking the kool aid – blogging with each other how terrible the world is to women.  That doesn’t help.  Frankly, that’s lame…really lame.

Yes, there is sexism in the world and lots of it — but a real Feminist goes out and fights it…and fights it by becoming a role model, being successful, showing we can and we want to…and a Feminist has independent thoughts and positions – yes, dares to disagree with the women who are stuck in the past …those women just blogging …thinking “woe is me..there is sexism out there that stands in my way..that is why I have become so utterly pathetic where only my very small crowd of equally pathetics will listen….I am so unhappy and it must be someone else’s fault.”

You don’t have to agree with Governor Palin on all issues or even one issue to know that she truly IS a Feminist.  She is out there being a role model…she is a doer on a giant level..she takes hits from the media and she keeps going..nothing is stopping her…in fact, she doesn’t have time to sit around and complain.  She creates more opportunity for women each day than one can quantify.  This is what women wanted.  Yes, women can be Governors..engineers…..run for Vice President…professional athletes…news anchors…professors….business owners….lawyers…doctors….and even astronauts.  We wanted women to have choices…we wanted it so that women had equal opportunity to succeed.

Feminists should be excited for what Governor Palin has done for women — you don’t have to vote for her but you should give her credit for what she has been doing and is doing for women.”

And the following comment by Greta really hit home with me.  I keep getting hate emails from one side or the other, attacking one candidate or the other.  And the thing that both puzzles and galls me is that these are from people who never sat in a phone bank calling to ask for support, never block walked, never painted a sign or planted it in a lawn, never attended a rally or donated a dollar to either party.  And yet a day or two before one of the most important elections our country has held, they believe a flood of spam hate email will actually influence, convince and carry the day.  Wake up!

So I join Greta when she says…

“Get over it. Here is an idea: instead of sitting on your keyboard sniping at other Feminists …get off your a** and campaign for the other ticket! That’s a novel idea: DO! and make yourself relevant again! who knows? you might even become happy!”"

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Empowering Others – Maria Shriver, First Lady Of California

The Women’s Conference 2008 – Be Who You Are…an Architect of Change.

A non-profit, non-partisan organization and forum, The Women’s Conference educates, inspires and empowers women through an annual convention and the WE Empower network. Under the leadership of California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and First Lady Maria Shriver, The Women’s Conference has grown from a small government initiative for working professionals into a far-reaching organization, a life-changing experience, and an international network of women from all walks of life, backgrounds and perspectives.

SACRAMENTO, CA - DECEMBER 06: California Gov....

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

First First Lady Maria Shriver is calling on all attendees of The Women’s Conference 2008 to help alleviate the food shortage in California. As Honorary Chair of CaliforniaVolunteers, she believes that all 37 million Californians have the ability to serve and make a positive impact in their communities. By launching the largest statewide volunteer matching network at www.CaliforniaVolunteers.org, the people of California can connect with thousands of volunteer opportunities.Lady Maria Shriver is calling on all attendees of The Women’s Conference 2008 to help alleviate the food shortage in California. As Honorary Chair of CaliforniaVolunteers, she believes that all 37 million Californians have the ability to serve and make a positive impact in their communities. By launching the largest statewide volunteer matching network at www.CaliforniaVolunteers.org, the people of California can connect with thousands of volunteer opportunities.

Shriver has transformed the Women’s Conference into one of the nation’s largest and most successful one-day women’s conferences, with past speakers including Oprah Winfrey, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Jane Fonda, Queen Noor of Jordan and Suze Orman. She also created the Minerva Awards (named after the Goddess Minerva on the California State Seal who epitomizes courage, wisdom and strength), given annually at the conference, to highlight the achievements of California women who make extraordinary contributions to their communities and the state.

This is the type of community building and empowerment which AdvancingWomen.com fully supports and is dedicated to supporting.  Do you have any thoughts or stories you want to share with others, any experiences about how you’ve helped empower others or been empowered yourself?  If so, please do share them.

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There’s More Fat To Be Chewed With Ophelia

A Fireside Chat with Ophelia.

The New Agenda, a non partisan group which seeks to advance women’s rights has this to say about its the weekly call-in show for members and guests of The New Agenda,, hosted by Amy Siskind. :

Thank you to those of you who joined us for our first week of Chewing the Fat with Ophelia.  The show was a resounding success with callers from PA, OH, FL, IN, NM, WI, MN, NJ and NY buzzing in to let their hair down and chew some fat!

Please join us tomorrow night, Monday, October 20th from 10-11 p.m. EST for our second show.

“It’s getting bad out there. The news seems to go from bad to worse. The sexism is running rampant. The economy is a mess. Our political system seems corrupt. With so much anxiety, upset, fear and just plain outrage, we need to be there for each other! The format will be open. Please call with your questions, concerns, or just to vent. Hopefully we can all feel a little better after an hour together, and maybe even learn a thing or two along the way!

This is a new kind of radio: internet podcasting. The “radio” is your computer – all you have to do is go to the website when the show is scheduled to start, and the show will play right there on your computer screen. (You do have to have your computer speakers turned on!) There’s also a telephone number for you to call in and talk to the host or ask a question, just like with traditional radio shows: (347) 324-5942. Plus, there’s a chat room feature too, so you can “chat” with other listeners while you’re listening to the show. And if you miss the live broadcast, a recording of the program is automatically stored right there on the page so you can listen to it later.

CHEWING THE FAT WITH OPHELIA

The call-in number is (347) 324-5942. Join us!

The New Agenda, Team
New Agenda, Media Alert

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Chewing the Fat with Ophelia – Or – What’s A Podcast, Sister?

Chewing the Fat with Ophelia : The New Agenda.

A fireside chat with Ophelia fireside chat with Ophelia.

The New Agenda , a non partisan group, believes the country is going through a real rough patch and we need to be there for one another.

Enter Ophelia.

Ophelia is here to listen and understand – not judge.

She asks: Can we talk?

The New Agenda,  is launching a podcast so we all have a place to vent, share our stories and possibly get some answers.  They explain : “This is a new kind of radio: internet podcasting. The “radio” is your computer — all you have to do is go to Blog Talk Radio when the show is scheduled to start, and the show will play right there on your computer screen. (You do have to have your computer speakers turned on!) There’s also a telephone number for you to call in and talk to the host or ask a question, just like with traditional radio shows: (347) 324-5942. Plus, there’s a chat room feature too, so you can “chat” with other listeners while you’re listening to the show. And if you miss the live broadcast, a recording of the program is automatically stored right there on the page so you can listen to it later.

We’ve been reading the emails and comments from around the country and it’s clear: people want and need to vent! Call in and tell Ophelia what you’re feeling. Sisters need to help sisters in this difficult time.

Our first show is Monday, October 13, 2008, from 10pm to 11pm EST. The call-in number is (347) 324-5942. Join us!

We should also mention that Ophelia knows a thing or two about the economy. If there’s something that you have heard or read, and you don’t understand it, ask Ophelia.”

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Women Power: From The Ballot Box To The Blogosphere

WWW's

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Gretchen Glasscock, AdvancingWomen.com

Ok.  So some of women’s power is illusory.  Our foremothers not only got us the vote, we now have more women voters than men voters in the U.S. but we don’t have a single, monolithic voting bloc that can swing elections, although we can tip them.  Women have been successfully split along the lines of ideology, frequently by those who would use wedge issues to divide us, precisely so we don’t pull together as a decisive force.  (Remember: divide and conquer)  Other differences splinter us as well.  Some women who’ve clawed their way to the top don’t want to challenge the “old boy’s network” or “old media network”, because, essentially, they have become part of it.

But AdvancingWomen.com believes, for whichever women out there would like to challenge the status quo, you have to start from where you are with what you’ve got.  Wherever women are right now in our society and with whatever tools are at our disposal, we need to make a commitment to work for change and improvement in the lives of women.  In our government, women make up 18 percent of governors, 16 percent of senators and 16 percent of representatives. Not good enough!  There is one CEO of a Fortune 50 company.  There are another 11 women CEOs in the Fortune 500.  Not nearly good enough!

So that is where we are.  And that is where we have to start.  The ball is in our court.

Susan Estrich, first female president of the Harvard Law Review, first woman to run a major presidential campaign (Dukakis) wrote a book Sex & Power in which she questions whether women are ambitious enough or want power enough to do what it takes to get it. Her answer seems to be: “We don’t want it, or we don’t want it enough to pay the price, push up the mountain, do what it takes.”  And Estrich goes on to say: “You can’t change the rules if you’re not in the room. You can’t finish a revolution without getting in there and fighting. . . .”

Well, I’m not sure I agree with that.  The women I know are plenty ambitious.  Some are a little weighted down by having to work twice as hard as men to earn salaries which are not equivalent but, none-the-less, needed to support their families.  Often they are the primary care givers for children and elders at the same time.  But they are plenty ambitious and that’s why they frequently put in long hours and multi-task to a degree that might drop some men to their knees.

I think, perhaps, in the past, one major road block has been that women have always had to try to work from within a male dominated infrastructure, if they wished to effect change. If they wanted to be a journalist, they had to be accepted by a male publisher, their work approved by, frequently, a male editor.  Same with writing a book.  Or doing a TV show. Whether they wanted to create ripples in the media, academia or in corporate America, there were always male gate keepers and males in control and in charge.  Now, however, the Internet allows women to route around the male power structure and pursue their own objectives, however they choose.  We don’t have to ask anyone’s permission.  We just have to do it.

Today, women stand at a watershed moment facing a meaningful opportunity  to make their voices heard and exert more influence and dominance over their lives and future. The Net today with its enormous reach, its free platforms, automated tools and low cost of entry, combine to form an ideal platform for women to communicate, to build their communities into a powerful voice for change and women’s equity in many different arenas. They can also create businesses, write for profit, share knowledge and strategies, dispense advice and create their own platform on the Net.

Back in 1995, in the infancy of the Net, Australian author,Dale Spender, wrote a clarion call to arms in her book Nattering on the Net, urging women to stake their claim to power on the Net; to seize control and help write the rules of the new platform with its virtually unlimited potential. “In the real world men dominate communication. Men talk more often, they talk for longer periods, they adopt ‘centering positions’ (forcing females to hover around); men define the topic, assume the legitimacy of their own view, and override women who do not see the world in their terms. Much of this dominant status is achieved by interrupting and correcting. …Women are being kept out of cyber-communication with an electronic version of interruption and intimidation … women are being silenced on the net.”  In that long ago, but in many ways seminal book, Spender basically urged women to jump in and start the communication revolution on the Net to assure women would have the same voice and power as men.

The results have been dramatic.  As Cath Elliott points out in Women’s move from the ballot box to the blogosphere: ” Where we once had a very real fight on our hands to get our voices heard above the masculine fray, women have now created a space where we not only can be heard, but if we choose, we can shut out the brouhaha coming from some of the more unreconstructed men on the net. As attendees at the recent Blog Nation ( Ed. in England ) debate discovered, not only is the feminist blogosphere enjoying rude health, but women bloggers and writers are a growing force on the web.

The fact is there are now more women blogging than men. There are those, like ( the author,Cath Elliott ) who have opted to engage in some of the more male-dominated corners of the blogosphere, and there are others who have chosen to create more women-friendly spaces – virtual sanctuaries where women are free to debate their issues without having to worry about being shouted down by men, and where any would-be trolls and harassers are swiftly and mercilessly dealt with.”

But let us be clear.  Women-only spaces online are fine.  They may be as relaxing as a day at the spa or as warm and cozy or arch and competitive as one’s high school reunion.  They may be transcendent in their contemplation of women’s issues or perspective or philosophy.  But AdvancingWomen.com believes women can not afford not to engage in the rough and tumble of real-world debates involving all genders, all ethnicitys, all ages, straight, gay, pro-choice, pro-life, whatever. It’s a big diverse world out there and however much of a Mulligan stew it might be, every one has a vote in the future and we are all going to share it together, so we need to make our voices heard by all, not just the believers.

As Cath Elliott notes, ” In the same way that women have had to jump in to other male-dominated arenas in order to get our message across and to ensure our involvement in public and political life, we can’t afford to ignore the enormous potential the blogosphere affords us for both communicating our experience and making our voices count. And while there will always be a place for (women only) spaces which I cherish — what we can’t afford to do is isolate ourselves completely, and shut ourselves away in a virtual world where all we’re doing is preaching to the converted.

The blogosphere is the biggest public space we’ve ever had; we owe it to the women who fought so hard to secure us the vote 80 years ago to make the most of the opportunities a forum like this gives us, and to ensure that women are and always will be playing an equal role with men in the political and public life of this country, in all its manifestations.”

AdvancingWomen.com agrees wholeheartedly.  Now go out and start writing that blog or signing people up for your own community.

For more, read the following:

Community on the Net – The Platform To Network, The Power to Mentor

Yes, Some Blogs Are *Very* Profitable – And Some Of Them Are Women’s Blogs

“Rumors of Our Progress Have Been Greatly Exaggerated”


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