Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Hot on Facebook
Guy Buys $123 Safe on eBay, Finds $26,000 Inside Seller tries to get half the cash back, fails »

How About a Sex Speech, Obama?

Candidate should do for gender what he did for race

By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff

Posted Jun 12, 2008 8:27 AM CDT

(Newser) –  It’s a shame that Hillary Clinton never gave a speech about gender to match Barack Obama’s speech about race, writes Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times. So why not make that speech yourself, Barack? Kristof even has the talking points for you:

  • Racism is deeper, but sexism may be wider. More Americans say they’d vote for a black man than a woman.
  • Biases are stealthy. Americans don’t mean to discriminate based on gender; but the subconscious harbors stereotypes.

  • A conservative may well be the first woman president. The first Catholic president wasn’t “very Catholic” so don’t expect the glass-ceiling-breaker to be a women’s movement alum. 
  • Women haven't been powerful as a voting bloc. Party and home state say more about politicians, and voters, than their gender.
  • But politics could make a big difference for women. Obama could champion the neglected cause of maternal mortality—the stunning 1-in-10 chance African women have of dying in childbirth.

Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., bottom, is applauded as he prepares to speak at a Women for Obama event in San Francisco, Friday, Sept. 7, 2007.
Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., bottom, is applauded as he prepares to speak at a Women for Obama event in San Francisco, Friday, Sept. 7, 2007.   (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Barack Obama hugs two riders at the Little 500 women's bicycle race at the University of Indiana in Bloomington, Ind., Friday, April 11, 2008.
Barack Obama hugs two riders at the Little 500 women's bicycle race at the University of Indiana in Bloomington, Ind., Friday, April 11, 2008.   (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
A woman holds a photograph of Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama as his wife, Michelle, speaks to supporters Monday, Feb. 4, 2008, in Salt Lake City.
A woman holds a photograph of Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama as his wife, Michelle, speaks to supporters Monday, Feb. 4, 2008, in Salt Lake City.   (AP Photo/Douglas C. Pizac)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
To report an error on this story, notify our editors.
A snapshot of the day's best news stories.
 
COMMENTS
Be the first to comment on this story.

More Newser Stories

Hillary Raises Big Money for Obama

Clintons Cool to Obama After Hillary Snub

Obama to Offer Clinton a 'Graceful Exit'

5 Things to Watch in Puerto Rico

Dems Put Away Knives for Primaries


NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
Other Sites We Like:   24/7 Wall St.   |   Betty Confidential   |   BuzzFeed   |   Cracked   |   Fark   |   Timelines   |   The Frisky   |   Geek Sugar   |   NewsOne