State of the Union

I decided to take a deeper look at President Obama's 2013 State of the Union from a feminist point of view. Since in his inauguration Obama talked about how he was going to further the women's rights movement, I wanted to see if he would carry this over in his State of the Union. In the State of the Union, Obama didn't only use his words to bring his women's rights movement into focus but also in a subtler way he used examples to further the cause.

            Obama spoke about how women are frequently discriminated against not only in their places of employment, but frequently they can't even find salvation at home. Joe Biden wrote the Violence Against Women Act that was recently passed in the Senate. The bill was originally passed in 1994 but expired in 2011 and is now going to vote to be renewed. He also spoke about how Congress should make an effort to provide equality in the work place by finally passing the Paycheck Fairness Act. Women on average make only 77 cents to every dollar that a man makes for the same job. The Paycheck Fairness Act would be an expansion from the failed Equal Pay Act of 1963.

            President Obama also spoke of not only bettering life for American women, but women of the world. Obama spoke of how the US along with its allies will rid the world of extreme poverty, "by connecting more people to the global economy and empowering women." Obama also used Aung San Suu Kyi as an example of global women who was empowered to become part of the Burmese government. She was put under house arrest but still was able to impact her country and contribute to the global community. She was awarded with a Nobel Peace Prize in 1991. In 2012 she received in person the United States Congressional Gold Medal. Showcasing that women from other countries can be just as impactful if given the opportunity and that they should be rewarded for their actions.

            Suu Kyi wasn't the only example of feminine strength Obama utilized in the State of the Union. He also went on to talk about Hadiya Pendleton. Pendleton sang at President Obama's inauguration just weeks before, and was shot and killed because of gang violence. As you watched the broadcast of this section, Cleo Pendleton, the mother of the girl, was front and center. Instead of having both the mother and father, the camera people decided to focus on the maternal perspective. There is a special bond between a mother and daughter and the broadcasters decided to utilize this emotional draw. In addition to using the Pendletons in his call to action he also used Gabby Giffords as an example of people effected by gun violence.

             Most Americans have followed the story of Gabby Giffords from her near fatal assassination attempt to her remarkable recovery. Seeing her in support of gun control again brings up the maternal side of the people watching. Everyone has a mother, a sister, an aunt, some woman in their life that they would never like to see hurt. Obama was able to play on these sympathetic figures to gain support for his gun control views.

            Obama brought up the story of Menchu Sanchez, a New York City nurse, who rose to the challenge when Hurricane Sandy effected the power at her hospital. She helped to rescue twenty newborns from the devastated area. Obama again connected this woman to the nurturing aspect that women are supposed to have. The east coast was overwhelmed with damage from Hurricane Sandy and yet Obama chose to have this one neonatal nurse as his example. He chose a Filipino-American to be the face of the people who thrived even in the face of a natural disaster. This selection speaks volumes about what Obama also thinks of immigrants. He thinks that they can support the entire country, if small minded people would just give them the chance. Sanchez reflects  non-European Americans can help the country by saving 20 of our future citizens instead of being a hindrance.

            President Obama then brought up Desiline Victor who waited six hours to vote even though she is 102 years old. She didn't care about how long it took, she just wanted to make sure that her voice was heard and her vote counted. Again this goes back into Obama's campaign to the immigrants. He's saying that all people deserve a vote, from a 102 year old African American woman to an immigrant who wants to become an American citizen.

            With all of these examples of strong American women, I was left with a question. Is Obama just playing into stereotypes of women? If we do look at the examples that he provided: Aung San Suu Kyi was put under house arrest because she was a woman with political opinions and aspirations, Hadiya Pendleton and Gabby Giffords were victims of gun violence both at the hand of men, Menchu Sanchez was a woman who risked her own safety to rescue babies, Desiline Victor was ignored by the government when she wanted the right to vote much like the women in the first wave of feminism.

            When we look at the example of Brian Murphy we see the stereotypical male hero role coming into play. Like a Disney fairytale, Murphy became a knight in shining armor when a gunman opened fire on a Sikh temple, "he did not consider his own safety. He fought back until help arrived." Murphy was somebody who took action and "fought back" but when we look at the female examples, things were done to them. If America is considered the land of equal opportunity, I'm sure there could have been female examples that defied the stereotypical roles. But would that have been acceptable to showcase to a Congress who still believe that women shouldn't be given equal pay for their work? I think that President Obama could have stepped out and presented some "atypical" women who would become role models for the future generations. But he didn't. Not only could President Obama take note, but others in positions of power can realize that women are not damsels in distress or little girls playing with baby dolls. Women are three dimensional humans that deserve to be treated as such.

            Overall, Obama used more females examples in his State of the Union. He made references to Aung San Suu Kyi, Hadiya Pendleton, Gabby Giffords, Menchu Sanchez, and Desiline Victor. That brings the total of female examples to five. The number of male examples used, was one, the story about Brian Murphy. This pattern shows that Obama was trying to put women in the foreground. But the way that he described their stories left something to be desired. On the surface, it would seem that Obama placed the same value on both the female and the male examples that he used. All of the stories cast a positive light on the characters, but once digging deeper, the stereotypes began to shine through.