Misogyny v. racism in the Democratic race

Dave Roberts of Grist has written an email to Ezra Klein that perfectly captures my feelings about gender and racial dynamics of the Democratic race:

I'll grant upfront that my thoughts on misogyny and racism in the campaign are somewhat fraught, since as your run-of-the-mill privileged white dude, I hardly have the most direct window into their effects. Nonetheless, I'll venture an observation: misogyny is a much bigger player in this election than racism.

When Obama and Clinton first started running, I cringed in advance. I expected all sorts of crude race and gender stereotypes to come bubbling up -- not only from the right, where you'd expect it, but from the media and even from some quarters of the left.

When it comes to racism, I've been somewhat surprised to find that I was wrong. Very little of the narrative around Obama's run has touched on race; very few of the attacks on him have been coded racism, and those that have -- the occasional mention of his drug use, the links to his "madrassa" -- have come off as unspeakably crude and sunk like a stone,registering only in the fever swamps. If anything, the perception of Obama as "post-racial" (yes, I know there's no such thing) has been an asset, almost an insulator. (Expect that to change, obviously, if he makes it to the general. Jonah Goldberg's "the coloreds will riot!" post of last week is a preview.)

On misogyny, though, I've been shocked in the other direction: it's been more overt, more odious, and more unashamed that I could have predicted. The serial depictions of Clinton in the media (and yes, in blogs and op-eds both right and left) are a veritable hit parade of stereotypes about women: She's humorless. No, she cackles. She's a cold robot. No, she's a hysterical crybaby. She wears ugly pant suits. No, she's showing too much cleavage. Virgin, whore. Ballbreaker, weakling. Chris Matthews has been the standard-bearer here, but he's just the leader of an astonishingly large chorus of crude gender resentment -- a chorus that lamentably contains quite a few women.

I'm not a Hillary voter, for any number of reasons. I happen to think she's the wrong candidate for the historical moment. But I'd be crying too if I were her. This stuff is just gross.

Update 1/8 9:06 PM: A new, ugly example from the Washington Post's Joel Achenbach, who wrote that Hillary Clinton "needs a radio-controlled shock collar so that aides can zap her when she starts to get screechy." Stay classy!

Comments

[Rob]

I imagine one of the reasons Obama seems to have transcended race as a political impediment is that he is the modern-day equivalent of Ed Brooke and Ralph Bunche--a "clubbable" black man. When a more conventionally black candidate--one who in the parlance of last year's discussion among African-Americans is "black enough", like John Lewis or Al Sharpton--succeeds nationally as Obama has, it may be time to write the obituary of racism as a factor in American politics, but I fear that day isn’t here yet.

As for Senator Clinton, Mr. Roberts sets up Russert-like opposing ideas that in fact are not contradictory at all. Senator Clinton's "cackle" (to use Mr. Roberts' description) was ridiculed not because she was too humorous but because it seemed to be a calculated device, a way to dismiss whatever question she'd been asked and avoid answering. Mr. Roberts suggests that Senator Clinton has been characterized as an "hysterical crybaby." By whom? Most of the comment I've seen on her choking up has been positive. That which has been negative has focussed more on whether her choking up, like her "cackle" or her Southern patois at the church in Selma, is unauthentic, a calculated campaign strategy.

I should probably add a Dave Roberts Disclaimer: I am a privileged white dude, bearing the guilt of a thousand generations of racism and misogyny, unfit to walk on the earth much less comment on my gender and racial betters. Mea culpa!

[Shinobi]

Senator Clinton's "cackle" (to use Mr. Roberts' description) was ridiculed not because she was too humorous but because it seemed to be a calculated device, a way to dismiss whatever question she'd been asked and avoid answering.

Heh heh heh.

That's all I can really say to that.

While you may be right that some of it has to do with her fakeness, the backlash at her showing a little back bone a couple days ago I thought was telling. She's SOOO angry because she asserted herself! THE ANGRY FEMINISTS IN PANTSUITS ARE COMING FOR YOUR PRIVATE HEALTH INSURANCE!

Also, I've definitely heard her referred to as the Clagina *gag*. And yesterday someone was yelling "Iron My Shirt" at one of her appearances.

I do think it is hard to separate sexism from Clinton derangement syndrome though.

[Seth]

@Shinobi: She's not the first politician to use a laugh to gather her thoughts, but I think you're missing the fact that the word "cackle" has a certain connotation (witches).

Did anyone see Matthews pinching her (Clinton's) cheek? That was utter madness. Does anyone for a moment think Matthews would have given Obama a swat on the butt, or pinched his cheeks?

I would agree some of the mindless Clinton hatred does fuel it. But also I think her (until recently) perceived front-runner status does as well. It's likely that after New Hampshire we're going to see an increase in the rhetoric about Obama being Muslim, or name "confusion" with Osama and/or Saddam Hussein, and god only knows what else.

[Sean-B]

I guess Rob is saying if Clinton was as good as an actor as Reagan, it wouldn't be an issue. It's not about insincerity, it's about getting caught. Otherwise, it appears, that all politicians are sincere.