Sunday night we told you about Newsweek’s unflattering cover of Congresswoman and presidential candidate Michele Bachmann and how the magazine gleefully promoted it on Twitter with the hashtag #QueenofRage. (It sparked our own caption contest using an unflattering photo of Newsweek’s editrix, Tina Brown.)
Sexist shots at conservative women (of conservatives, period) by the media have become so prevalent that we hardly page so-called women’s groups any more because their support for female conservatives is non-existant. From the female equality industry, one group has been somewhat present, although vocally inconsistent: NOW.
While NOW refused to condemn Jerry Brown after he was overhead calling Meg Whitman a “whore” in an accidentally-recorded voicemail — they endorsed him the very next day — they did somewhat speak out in support of Sarah Palin after Bill Maher called her a derogatory name on his show.
“You’re trying to take up our time getting us to defend your friend Sarah Palin. If you keep us busy defending her, we have less time to defend women’s bodies from the onslaught of reproductive rights attacks and other threats to our freedom, safety, livelihood, etc,” wrote Bennett. “Sorry, but we can’t defend Palin or even Hillary Clinton from every sexist insult hurled at them in the media. That task would be impossible, and it would consume us. You know this would not be a productive way to fight for women’s equal rights, which is why you want us stuck in this morass.”
At the time I’d wondered what NOW was here for if it wasn’t to fight for equality in the media as well.
NOW has spoken up more forcefully for Congresswoman Bachmann.
Monday, the National Organization for Women (NOW) spoke out against Newsweek’s most recent cover, which features an extreme close-up of Michele Bachmann and the title “The Queen of Rage.”
“It’s sexist,” NOW president Terry O’Neill told TheDC. “Casting her in that expression and then adding ‘The Queen of Rage’ I think [it is].
[…]
“Who has ever called a man ‘The King of Rage?’ Basically what Newsweek magazine – and this is important, what Newsweek magazine, not a blog, Newsweek magazine – what they are saying of a woman who is a serious contender for President of the United States of America…They are basically casting her as a nut job,” O’Neill said. “The ‘Queen of Rage’ is something you apply to wrestlers or somebody who is crazy. They didn’t even do this to Howard Dean when he had his famous scream.”
NOW is diametrically opposed to Bachmann on practically every political issue. Bachmann is pro-life, NOW is pro-choice. Bachmann wants to make significant cuts to entitlements, while NOW it pushing to protect Social Security and Medicare. The list is practically infinite. Nevertheless, NOW is rallying to her side for all women in politics.
“The main reason why we would stand up for Michele Bachmann and defend her against these kind of misogynistic attacks is we want women to run for office. Of course my job is to defeat Michele Bachmann and I intend to do so. But good women will not run for office if Newsweek magazine can do this to such a prominent politician and get away with it.”
Color me surprised. No disclaimer, no addendum, just a straight statement calling a sexist action out for its sexism?
The goal with such groups is not to co-opt them as Democrats have successfully done (and convince women to campaign against their own best interests, which to me is downright bizarre) but to encourage the idea of defending all women in a political media that still views women suspiciously who aren’t playing second fiddle to a man — and by doing so encouraging more women to participate in politics.
Kudos to NOW for being the only women’s group to step up to the plate to bat for women, and not just the progressive ones. Let’s see a trend — and let’s see this extended to everyone, not just women.
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