Did He Really Just Call Her a Babe?
One would think that after last night’s debate there would be plenty of fodder for today’s newspapers. Issues like Afghanistan, Health Care, Human Rights, and the Economy are the first that come to mind. With topics as important as these to be discussed and debated it would make sense for Boston’s leading newspaper to address each candidate’s position wouldn’t it? Well, it’s too bad that they were more preoccupied with Coakley’ shoes to find anything more substantive to write about.
I find this article by Alex Beam of the Boston Globe to be absolutely infuriating both as a woman and as a professional. Beam goes into alarming detail about Coakley’s chin positioning, the brown of her suit, and the youthfulness of her Mary Janes. It seems as though he is suggesting that if she wins she will be winning because, as he said, she is a “babe” and solely for that reason. Never mind the fact that she is an accomplished strong woman and public servant who will win the nomination because she is the most deserving. It seems that some men will never be able to see past a pretty face, and that truly is what saddens me the most about this deplorable article.
On December 8th let’s stand up to these men. It’s time to put substance over hemlines and show men like Beam that a woman truly is the best person to do a man’s job.
7 comments
He’s spending an aweful lot of time thinking about her feet. Ewww.
This will roll off of Martha’s back. But you know who it hurts? It hurts the young women who are trying to scratch out a living and build a career in a society in which experienced men who have a megaphone use it to tell younger men that sexism is not shameful — it’s to be broadcast as fine fun.
Some day we will have enough qualified women in high office that they are unremarkable. Then, female candidates will be evaluated not by their haircuts, shoes, ankles, or eyeglasses, but by their track records and ideas. Let’s take one step toward that dream by calling our friends and urging them to help elect Martha Coakley on December 8.
Where’s the comparable critique of the guys’ appearances?
This is just more reason for women to vote on Dec 8. Bring as many women to the polls as will fit in your car or on the sidewalk.
And to add insult to injury … do you think Yvonne Abraham would have written the same column about why Capuano’s aggressiveness is good if the candidate’s first name were Michelle instead of Michael?
[...] Alex Beam about his Globe column originally entitled “The Babe Factor,” about which Mum4Martha wrote here. Eagen concluded that if the general election turned out to be Coakley v. Brown, it would be a [...]
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