The theme of this unit lead me to research into Hillary Clinton’s time as Secretary of State. This is a position that a woman could’ve never dreamed of holding less than a century ago. Regardless of one’s political views, it is hard to not feel inspired by a woman Secretary of State after learning of the struggles women of our history have faced. This unit really opened my eyes to how far women’s rights have come, and the article I have cited above reassured those feelings.
Within just the first five months Clinton was in office, she mentioned women 450 times in her speeches. She also stated that “women are key to the success of the Obama administration’s major development and economic-growth initiatives”, adding that “e have an obligation to stand up for their rights”. The What Has Feminism Accomplished? video of this unit says that the amount of women that are bread winners for their family has risen 29% from 1970 to 2014. With such large improvements such as these, Clinton had the opportunity to be in office, while also progressing feminism through her position of power and celebrity status. This article stresses Clinton’s continuous attempts to raise awareness and accountability, which are a main topic of What Has Feminism Accomplished?.
In Keller: Girls Feminist Blogging in a Post-Feminist Age, Amandine stated that an activist is “someone who has a cause and does something about it”. This related to the above article in the sense that Clinton recognized the dangers faced by women of war-torn countries, and acted on it. She visited Congo during her first year of office and met with women who had encountered sexual violence, then strived for United Nations Security Council resolutions.
I found this article to be very interesting and helpful in relating this unit’s readings/videos with well-known public figures, and I hope it does the same for you all, political views aside.