Hillary, Don’t Apologize

by Anita Finlay in Election 2016, Hillary Clinton

Hillary, don’t you dare apologize. You ran a fierce campaign centering people of color, women, LGBTQ, people with disabilities, families and immigrants – all of whom are woefully underrepresented in government …and on Sunday talk shows. You didn’t let us down. America let you down. From the launch of your first campaign video, you showcased the best of us, of all stripe, striving together in a picture of what today’s America actually looks like. This is the America that I want to live in. Your campaign was something to be proud of. Did you make mistakes? Sure. It is also true that you were excoriated for that which every man is excused. And you did plenty right. In 2016, you became the first woman presidential nominee of a major party and got more votes than any. white. man. in. history. (Just as in 2008, you got more votes than anyone in primary history.) Mistakes don’t yield such results.

When have we ever heard of any presidential candidate daring to offer an eloquent, full-throated defense of Roe v Wade and women’s right to autonomy and full equality, centering people of color and people with disabilities, taking on the opiod epidemic, the need for criminal justice reform, immigration reform and resolving student debt? Yours was a progressive, forward-thinking bold campaign and yes, the economy was your number one issue. You offered sensible policies that would actually work.

Anyone saying you were a weak candidate lives in denial. You faced the most vicious media onslaught I have yet seen leveled at anyone. The way you stood up taught me to stand up. You won the popular vote by three million despite a primary opponent wrongly smearing your character, serving up ammunition that opponent Trump used word for word in the general election. You also had to fight past Facebook’s fake news seen by millions, persistent GOP smear, a rogue FBI director and Russian hacking.

By your very existence, Secretary Clinton, and because you breathe, you seemed to be picking a fight with cynical, click bait driven media operatives who print ink by the barrel. They’ll never forgive you for not breaking. Even now that you have declared your political career over, they wish to silence you. The upcoming release of your book, What Happened, has caused many heads to explode. How much insecure drivel have I read from male pundits worrying about everyone else’s perspective and feelings but yours. Your side of the story, your insights from this campaign and advice to all of us who choose to stand up and fight going forward will be valuable. It must not be driven underground.

As Jill Filipovic correctly pointed out, 14 months ahead of the midterms, there will never be a better opportunity. Furthermore, we will never get equal or quality representation as long as we keep sweeping these issues under the rug. If and when Senators Kamala Harris or Kirsten Gillibrand step to the plate, they will be smeared and wrecked the same way – attempts to undermine them have already begun on both the Left and Right.

Secretary Clinton, you have every right, just like your under-represented 65.8 million voters have every right to a voice, to speak the truth and even rub the culprit’s noses in their untoward behavior, if necessary.

And it is certainly not your fault that a corporate owned media set its sights on taking you down. I haven’t been able to get a decent night’s sleep with the erratic Mr. “Grab ‘Em By The P*ssy” in office, but it’s also not your responsibility that so many were willing to buy into a boastful con man, abetted by $2 billion dollars of free advertising courtesy profit-driven network execs. So when the DaBoyz of either “Party” or complicit gals want to tell you to STFU, I say let them heed their own advice.

Hillary, you have your say and certainly, take responsibility all you want – but don’t you bloody dare apologize to us. You showed up every day.

I couldn’t be more proud of you.

I will never forget…and this America is still attainable.