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The Corral
Davis deserves acclaim
Colt Staff
Since Wendy Davis first stepped into office, I have found her in every way worthy of admiration.
My respect for the politician has been unwavering, especially during the duration of her groundbreaking filibuster over the summer advocating womens' rights to abortion. Many attempts were made by the opposing gender and party to terminate her display and dismiss her legislation, but Davis prevailed, becoming a national hero.
You can imagine that many of her supporters were elated when she announced her campaign for governor of Texas. I certainly was. Texas could use a leader like Davis, one unrivaled in intelligence and resourcefulness. This is not, however, a universal recognized sentiment.
Another candidate has emerged to represent the good ol' boys: Greg Abbott. He is your typical conservative: gun loving, gay hating, misogynistic. Recently, he claimed that he would not sign the Lilly Ledbetter-Like Bill, which would protect women from discrimination in the workplace. He also said that he would do everything in his power to prevent same-sex marriage from ever reaching legality in Texas. Sounds like a real winner.
Since both Davis and Abbott have been announced to be the primary candidates, it is pretty obvious that some classic insult slinging and snide remarks would occur between them. Some campaign ads, maybe, with ominous music playing in the background as an announcer lists the opposing nominee's every fault. It is only natural, really, for people to glorify themselves in the game of politics.
Nothing, however, could have prepared me for how brutal it would be.
In case you hadn't realized, readers, we live in a male-dominated society. Of course Davis would be under tight scrutiny by very old, white, vaguely misogynistic men. Davis' past, though, is the main thing that is being used against her. She portrays herself as a champion who overcame poverty, teenage pregnancy, divorce, and, despite all the odds, put herself through Harvard Law School to get where she is today. While none of these things are necessarily untrue to my knowledge, some find some aspects of her story so terrible that she is not qualified to be the leader of this state.
The main complaints about Davis' former life are about her ex-husband, who helped put her through law school, and her "abandonment" of her children to pursue her dreams. As it goes, Davis divorced her wealthy husband once she graduated from Harvard, giving some the impression that she simply used him for his money, and during her time in college, she moved to Massachusetts, away from her children, and flew back to Texas to visit them every few weeks, which many equated to negligent parenting.
It should not be that big of a deal, right? I mean, even if these accusations are true, this does not hinder her ability to govern our state. But once again, she is a woman, and being a female in a position of power makes her more prone to personal criticism and ridicule.
Let me just say this: If a male politician had done something similar to Davis' actions, would he be hated so much? No. Obviously not, because in this world, we are taught that boys will be boys.
Ms.Davis is running to better a state that largely condemns her for chromosomes, which makes her chance of victory less than probable. But by running in the first place, she is creating dialogue and pointing out incongruities that in themselves shake the sexist dust of conservatism up a bit. Whether or not Davis is our next Governor she has already done much for Texan women, and in this way she is already victorious.
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