To my sisters planning to vote for McCain

June 10, 2008 by twitterpaters

by twit

I realize it hurts that Hillary didn’t get the nomination, especially after all of the early media attention that said she was the inevitable candidate. It was a historical moment on its own, providing clear evidence of the cultural shift that finally allowed a woman to become known as the most credible candidate for the Democratic ticket.

I realize that she was going to vindicate every woman, create a victory for every female held back and left behind by this sexist culture of ours. She called much-needed attention to the inequalities faced by women in America and the unfulfilled promises of liberty and justice for all.

Now the internet is ablaze with former Hillary supporters promising to either vote for McCain, to not vote at all or to write in Hillary on election day. As a woman, from my heart to yours, I ask you to remember why you supported Hillary in the first place. You care about the plight of women, you are sick and tired of being treated like a second-class citizen, you want change to come and you want it now.

I ask you to consider how staying home on election day, writing Hillary in or voting for McCain abandons that clarion call.

Will you work further destruction on your sisters and daughters in order to protest Hillary’s loss of the nomination? Will you work to secure a darker future for all women, now that your first choice is no longer available?

The Guardian reports on June 5, 2008 that McCain “has promised to appoint only conservative judges to the supreme court – a key aspiration of anti-abortionists,” and he “has said he favours a constitutional amendment to ban abortion in almost all cases.”

The current alignment of the Supreme Court is already grim when it comes to the most fundamental tenet of female equality – that we have the right to choose our own destiny. It is likely that the next President will have at least one opportunity to appoint a Justice to the United States Supreme Court.

We risk a return to the incomprehensible days of when women were legally considered second-class citizens, deprived of control over their own bodies and forced to seek unsafe methods to terminate a pregnancy. If you are a supporter of women’s rights, I don’t have to convince you of how real this threat is.

There are a multitude of other policy issues that McCain supports that are contrary to the interests of women in general and the country as a whole. For example, “in April, he skipped a Senate vote on giving women equal pay for equal work, arguing that it would encourage litigation. He has opposed every attempt to raise the minimum wage since it was last increased in 1997.”

But that is only the beginning: “McCain has voted to restrict union rights across the US, has backed cuts in health provision for the elderly, supports the burden of health insurance being taken away from employers and put on the shoulders of individuals.”

There is also the abundant evidence concerning McCain’s personal character, which at its core appears to be the definition of sexism and misogyny. Let’s not forget the “joke he told to a Republican fund-raiser at the time of the Monica Lewinsky scandal: “Why is Chelsea Clinton so ugly?” he japed. “Because her father is Janet Reno.”” Apparently, that is the nature of McCain’s sense of humor.

Then there is this report, confirmed by three journalists:

McCain’s wife Cindy was playfully twiddling with his hair one day. “You’re getting a little thin up there,” she said. McCain grew red in the face and replied: “At least I don’t plaster on the makeup like a trollop, you cunt.”

Whether you vote for him, for Hillary or don’t vote at all, you abandon the rights and future of women to a man who can’t even provide basic respect to his current wife. It is also important to look beyond the reports of his hateful comments to his reported life choices, including how he has treated his first wife. McCain’s conduct to his first wife has been described as “brutal,” and he has confirmed that he cheated on her while she recuperated from a terrible car accident that left her disfigured for life.

She forgives him, but can you? On behalf of all women, can you support a man like this?

If you are true to the reasons you supported Hillary, if you truly care about the fate of women in America, then it is time to let go of the disappointment and frustration that Hillary didn’t make it this year.

If you support McCain by your affirmative vote or refusal to cast one for Obama, understand that it will appear that the only possible justification for your abandonment of women is that it is far more important to keep a nigger out of the White House.

I couldn’t possibly offend you with my use of that horrible word. The fate of women is not your true concern if you now support John McCain for President. Obama is the candidate who will work hard for the equality of all people, his record and policies make that clear.

To abandon Obama and the Democratic Party in order to support John McCain leads to but one conclusion: you are willing to sacrifice freedom and equality for all women before you let a nigger hold the highest office.

I say that horrible word again because I’m trying to speak in a language you might understand.

Don’t think for a moment that your racism isn’t shining through every shrill promise you make to work against Obama. Your motives are obvious if you try to claim that your support for McCain is a protest on behalf of women’s rights.