Susan Rose’s piece “Winning with Women” does a great job of discussing the bleak state of affairs when it comes to women in elected office as well as the reasons why that is the case. Our country is in dire need of competent, effective female leadership. On the south coast of Santa Barbara County, however, the Santa Barbara Women’s Political Committee (SBWPC) has proven effective in inverting the dominant paradigm of electoral politics.
Over the past 24 years, the SBWPC has had great success in cultivating, supporting and helping women candidates get elected and re-elected into all offices of government from school boards to the United States Congress. These women have made a tremendously positive impact in our local community by providing positive role models for young girls and women as well as enacting landmark policies and legislation on issues of improvement of public school education, domestic violence, air and water quality, and health care as well as other issues. Female representatives make the difference.
We must to continue to encourage our sisters, mothers, daughters and friends to increase women’s participation at the local level while also forging ahead to state and national offices. Join the SBWPC on March 16, 2012 for the Presidents’ Circle Lunch and hear Mary Hughes of The 2012 Project speak on electing women to office. Get inspired!
Comments
Boxer, Capps, Palin, and Bachman prove that being female is not in and of itself proof of actually having a brain. How about we get some decent politicians WITHOUT REGARD TO GENDER? If they happen to be female that's fine...
italiansurg (anonymous profile)
March 14, 2012 at 6:47 p.m. (Suggest removal)
By her logic Obama and Gov. Brown should be replaced by women.
Let's get to it!
billclausen (anonymous profile)
March 14, 2012 at 9:06 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Santa Barbara: The SBWPC is a sham. It is NOT interested in helping women get elected.
It is interested ONLY in helping left wing, liberal women get elected.
Please do NOT support a group that is biased and explicitly against any viewpoint other than liberal democrat.
SBWPC and Jane Gray should be ashamed of themselves.
willy88 (anonymous profile)
March 14, 2012 at 10:59 p.m. (Suggest removal)
willy88-But aren't Republican and moderate women simply exploited tools of the Right Wing unable to think for themselves and universally suffering from Stockholm Syndrome? Thank goodness the only truly free and intelligent women, Progressives, are here to show their oppressed brethren the way to salvation and self worth.
italiansurg (anonymous profile)
March 15, 2012 at 6:30 a.m. (Suggest removal)
SBWPC is only interested in getting leftwing liberal Dems elected. Gender is secondary to their cause. I could not see them endorsing a decline-to-state or Republican female, even if she were pro-choice, if there was a liberal Dem male like Das or Grant in the same race.
dogsnsand (anonymous profile)
March 15, 2012 at 9:10 a.m. (Suggest removal)
*True* liberalism (the type I was raised with) doesn't pit genders and races against each other like the polemics Jane Gray preaches. True liberalism stood up to racism, sexism, advocated for the poor, but today's "progressive" movement has hijacked that cause. Don't be fooled by these people.
billclausen (anonymous profile)
March 15, 2012 at 4:21 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Until we have gender equity in politics, the war on women will continue unchecked at the Federal level and in state houses across the country. Thank you Santa Barbara Women's Political Committee for effective leadership in building a strong contingent of local feminist candidates -- both male and female.
hopeful (anonymous profile)
March 15, 2012 at 6:33 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Hopeful: please cite some specific examples.
billclausen (anonymous profile)
March 15, 2012 at 7:05 p.m. (Suggest removal)
willy88 (anonymous profile)
March 15, 2012 at 11:17 p.m.
Is the War on Women more like WWII or the Vietnam War? I kinda want to figure out how my side is going to end up. It's time to read more news because I was unaware that war was declared.
italiansurg (anonymous profile)
March 16, 2012 at 6:06 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Italiansurg: I keep wanting us all to be on the same side but people such as Gray and Rose thrive on keeping us apart. It's like the disgusting pandering to various ethnic groups: It's all about conquer and divide.
My request still stands: I would like Hopeful to provide specific examples of the discrimination he/she mentiones and if this information is provided than I will be more than glad to assist in removing those people from office.
A society cannot achieve gender/racial harmony when the ideas Susan Rose espouse in her op-ed piece prevail.
These latter-day "progressives" have no clue about what true equality is about...or perhaps they don't want equality.
billclausen (anonymous profile)
March 16, 2012 at 8:50 p.m. (Suggest removal)
My opinion is obviously the same as your bc. You and I are stuck in the now archaic thought process that being liberal means to offer equal opportunity for everyone without some side-bar agenda.
Diversity in this country has been turned upside down and instead of acknowledging where we are all the same we are instead dwelling on our differences.
Worse yet is until we meet their moving definition of equality the rest of us will be told we're either ignorant or bigots or Neanderthals and subjected to an ever growing group of regulations to insure their definition of equality is met all the while tossing out the pertinent notion of individual responsibility and accountability.
I'm going to build a bunker in my backyard as I'm now afraid of hordes of women, enlisted in "the war" (think "the troubles" from Ireland), will come traipsing across my lawn, rolling pins and guns in hand and with the threat of withholding conjugal relations, hell bent on enforcing their version of equality.
italiansurg (anonymous profile)
March 17, 2012 at 8:44 a.m. (Suggest removal)