A Hail to the Women Who Went Before Me

Last night I joined the American Red Cross as a volunteer.

Again.

Okay, technically I never left. I just changed chapters to reflect the fact that I don't live where I used to live.

I decided to start over, just like a brand spankin' new volunteer who has never before taken a CPR course, or taught a Disaster Education class, or led a committee. Or, for that matter, been up close an personal with chapter politics. (Hoping to avoid that this time around - what a waste of time.)

I love the Red Cross. These thousands of volunteers do amazing things in horrible circumstances every day somewhere in the world. No matter what, no matter who...if there is a need, the Red Cross is there. I love being a part of that.

So there I was, back in orientation being reminded of the honor of serving with these fine men and women when the woman leading the class made the following comment:

"75 years ago to the day that Hillary Clinton addressed the Democratic Convention in 2008, the suffragettes turned over this building to the American Red Cross. They no longer needed it...they'd won the fight."

They most certainly did win the fight. Not the war. But definitely the fight.

And so as I sat there, reflecting on those women who came before me I thought also of my daughter I made this solemn promise:

I will do everything in my power to make sure that their fight was not, and will never be, in vain.

NL

Open Season on Women

"More and more people are having babies simply for the love of german engineering." Brooke Shields in the new Volkswagen Routan ad campaign

This commercial just wigs me out. It took a bit for me to figure out why and frankly, it was the new Chevy Traverse commercial that closed the brain loop for me. You know the one...a woman driving a Traverse notices shoes falling from the sky, stops her car, and begins to scoop them up by the armful and shove them in the cargo hold of her car. Leaving me to wonder, 'how do you match the pairs?'

Maybe I'm just being sensitive here but just WHO is the target audience supposed to be for these two ads? Does Volkswagen really think that having Brooke Shields lecture in the mockumentary about the relationship between family planning and mini-vans is going to make women feel anything but stereotyped?

Does Chevy really think that the way you sell a car to a woman is to throw shoes at it?

Cadillac did this right with the fabulous Kate Walsh delivering the line "The question is, when you turn it on does it return the favor?" in a way that made it clear that it's not just a car for the boys club.

Just because a woman has children doesn't mean she wants to be classified as a "soccer" or "hockey" mom. Giving birth does NOT make a woman take leave of her senses or her sense of style. Nor does it create in her a wanton lustfullness for german engineering.

I love shoes, this is true. I also love gadgets. You wanna sell me on a car? Show me the amazing navigation system that connects me to all of my data on the go any time I need it. Treat me as smarter than a woman who, noticing shoes falling out of the sky, doesn't bother to ask "what is going on?" and instead hops out and scoops them up. That ad is just stupid on too many levels to mention.

It certainly seems to me that the advertising industry has picked up on the public sentiment that a woman who is strong, confident, and capable is nothing more than a woman who will have a child or stop for shoes all for a car. It makes me wonder where this came from and to be honest, I'm afraid much of it is flourishing in the political arena...on both sides.

William Shatner's character Denny Crane said, on Boston Legal this week, that sexism is alive and well in American and women are the ones perpetuating it.

You think?

Because when ads like these or politics like we've seen in the past 18 months succeed, we most certainly are perptuating it. And we should be deeply ashamed.


NL

Signs of the Times

So my father, in a bold political move, did something he has never done before.

He put a yard sign up in his yard. For John McCain.

My mother is not happy about this. My sister and brother-in-law (a cop), who share a pipestem driveway with my parents and are the first of the two houses, are not happy about this.

Their problem isn't that they disagree with my dad. Their problem is that they are worried about *other* people who disagree with him and feel that vandalization is an okay way to express an opinion.

I'd say they were crazy...if it were any other election. But while I was in Texas and in Pennsylvania, I heard a number of people say they had the same concerns when they were considering putting their support for Hillary Clinton in full view. We verified, in Texas, a number actual sign thefts and did hear reports of vandalism, so it's not a unique concern. In fact, there are *laws* around this sort of thing precisely. But it's hard to catch sneaks in the night.

A friend from work relayed the following story to me a few weeks back. She was driving to work with her "Hillary" sticker still proudly displayed. She and Hillary Clinton are actually personal friends so it seems reasonable that although Hillary is no longer in the race my friend is not so inclined to remove the sticker. An individual driving a car behind her honked his horn, sped up, and began to guesture rudely while pointing back and forth between her sticker and her as a driver. So she, this fairly well mannered southern lady, returned the favor.

Then he turned into the parking garage at work. Her work. My work.

We work for a consulting firm where supposedly we hire people who should know better.

I'm not a bumper sticker kind of girl. When we were campaigning for Hillary we did put signage on our 30 foot RV. And we did worry about having it up when we went to campgrounds. But campgrounds are kind of special and generally full of people, we've learned, who don't go around messing with your RV just because they disagree with you. We did generate a lot of conversation when we'd roll in - and most of it, I'm pleased to say, quite civil.

But I drive a Beetle convertible and my not being a bumper sticker kind of girl isn't why there is no support sticker for McCain on it. Because my brother-in-law, the cop, isn't worried about vandalism for no good reason.

I don't care who you support, but I do know this - you should be able to have a yard sign or bumper sticker and not have to worry about stupid people and what they might do to you.

Just a thought.

NL