Wednesday, August 3, 2016

When Women Win, Men Win, Too

WHEN a woman breaks a glass ceiling and becomes the presidential nominee of a major political party, what should men think?

Should men applaud that another barrier has fallen so that our world is more fair and equitable? Or should we fret that when women win, we lose — that soon we’ll have to give up grunting and football games for putting down toilet seats and talking about our “feelings”?

The Democratic National Convention this past week was one long celebration of XX chromosomes and the emancipation of women. A spine-tingling moment came when 102-year-old Geraldine “Jerry” Emmett, born before women could vote in federal elections, announced Arizona’s votes for Hillary Clinton — and then cried.

Yet Democratic strategists also worry, rightly I think, that the giddy enthusiasm for gender progress may turn off men. Already, Donald Trump has a huge lead among white men with no college degree, and that’s the reason the overall polls are close.

So let me try to make the case that when women win, we men win, too.

Put aside your feelings about Hillary Clinton: I understand that many Americans distrust her and would welcome a woman in the White House if it were someone else. But whatever one thinks of Clinton, her nomination is a milestone, and a lesson of history is that when women advance, humanity advances.

READ MORE: 

NYTIMES | Op-Ed Columnist | Nicholas Kristof

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