Women In Politics Magazine: Opening Doors

OPENING DOORS

A Word from Our Magazine Manager:

Christine Corry

“As president I would…” My elementary school’s quick write assignments started off the school day with an outlandish scenario in which we used our imaginations to build stories with prompts of monsters and other planets. To me, the notion of being president was equally outlandish as a fictional creature. That particular day, I wrote tirelessly about the policy I would implement. From ending global warming to making a national holiday on my birthday, I detailed the creative endeavors I would take on.

When time ran out, I turned in my paper and waved goodbye to the ambition of ever being president. I could not fathom it being a reality because I had no idea a woman could be even considered for the role.

During those elementary school years, I was sure that I would much rather be a teacher than the president. After all, it was the only professional role I had seen a woman partake in. If I had learned then about Marie Curie, Jane Austen, or Sally Ride maybe I would have aspired to be a scientist, author, or astronaut. All I knew was the people in this world who looked like me were most often my teachers, so this path was a sure one. I was never told that I couldn’t take on one of these other career paths, but with no other women to lead the way, I had no idea how I would.

At 7 years old, I could not imagine a

Diversity in politics has drastically improved in

reality in which I was president because I

recent times. We are living in the most diverse

had never seen someone like me considered as a realistic candidate for

US government in history. We have bested those who came before us in providing a voice

the presidency. Representation is

to groups which have historically gone unheard,

absolutely vital. Yet, I had hopes for

but that does not mean we can rest our efforts.

progress and change. Since my

Though we celebrate the fantastic

elementary school days, I have witnessed

representation of the first Woman of Color in

how realistic a female president actually

the Supreme Court, we must still reckon with

is. 2016 was revolutionary in my world view as it expanded the scope of possibilities as to what my involvement and politics could eventually be. In my own political discoveries, research, and involvement, I have gotten to see how politics has become increasingly diverse.

I feel lucky enough to have grown up

motherhood (or lack thereof) being a barrier to entry for women in politics. Though we appreciate the history of mother’s day, we must still look to the future in ending stigma for female choices and experiences. We should strive to constantly raise that bar, becoming a more representative body each and every election cycle.

with the idea of a president extending to BIPOC individuals through the Obama administration. Female politicians in Congress and judges in the Supreme Court demonstrate to me that a woman’s role can indeed extend to powerful roles within politics. With the 2020 election, that possibility of political involvement expanded further to encompass the role of Vice President.

Seeing strong women in roles of leadership within and beyond the political sphere allowed my own aspirations to flourish.

I am honored to live my post-elementary-school life with the understanding that, as a woman, there was not one prescribed role I needed to fill. I could dream of being a teacher, mother, scientist, author, astronaut, or president! I no longer looked to the past to inform how I would shape my future, I would only dream of what could be.

Table of Contents 01 ____

03 ____

Breaking the Glass Ceiling: Ketanji Brown Jackson Edition by: Sage Lahmers

A Short History Lesson: Mother's Day by: Antonia Paulus

05 ____

07 ____

Madeline Albright: A Life Well Lived and a Path Well Charted by: Caroline Houge

Period Stigma: Stop the Stigma! End the Shame! by: Pelumi Adekunle

09 ____

11 ____

Trans Women in Women's Sports by: Veronica Rohlfing

The Mistrust of Childless Women in Politics by: Susannah Mayall

13 ____

17 ____

The Politics of Abortion and the Expectations of Motherhood by: Hanna Matsukawa

Education and Accessibility in Politics: How We Can Level the Playing Field by: Lyla Anderson

Breaking the Glass Ceiling: Ketanji Brown Jackson Edition

by: Sage Lahmers

Welcome to the Supreme Court, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson! Judge Jackson is making history as the first Black woman on the Supreme Court with a confirmation vote of 53-47 with three Republicans voting to confirm. This includes 44 no votes and 3 abstentions which all came from Republican senators. She Brown is replacing Judge Stephen Breyer (whom she clerked for) and holds qualifications most lawyers can only aspire of, with the American Bar Association stating that she is “unanimously well qualified.” This is the highest possible category. Her confirmation hearing occurred from March 21-24 and she was confirmed on April 7th.

A Washington D.C. native, Jackson grew up in Florida, and, while in high school, served as class president and was an avid participant at speech and debate competitions.

She graduated from Harvard College in 1992 and Harvard Law School in 1996 with honors. She was even reportedly partnered with Matt Damon in drama class.

Ketanji clerked for three federal jurists and spent a year as a journalist and researcher at Time magazine post law school. Early in her career she worked as a public defender in Washington D.C., a topic that she was consistently questioned about during her confirmation hearing. As a public defender she was involved with a few Guantanamo Bay related cases. She also spent time in the private sector. She was nominated for a district court by Obama and for the U.S. Court of Appeals by Biden to fill the spot left by Merrick Garland.

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Kentaji Brown Jackson is not lacking in experience or qualification, so those who opposed her nomination were out of legitimate critiques based on her experience. She has 8.9 years of prior experience on the bench, more than four current justices. They then decided to turn to old techniques: racism and misogyny. Senator Marsha Blackburn questioned Judge Brown Jackson about whether she had a “personal hidden agenda to incorporate critical race theory” into the legal system. Kentaji Brown Jackson also had senators repeatedly quote Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at her and asked if it is racist to combat racism. She remained even tempered

While Kentaji Brown Jackson’s

throughout the hearing. It was

spot on the Supreme Court will

shocking to me to see the

likely not change the general

stark difference between

ruling of the court due to the

Brown Jackson and

6-3 conservative majority,

Kavanaugh’s hearings.

having a broader representation on the largely white male court is incredibly important. She has also acquired a fairly high level of public support, which may bring attention to the upcoming cases facing the court that could have serious repercussions.

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A Short History Lesson:

Mother's Day

by: Antonia Paulus Mother's Day, Muttertag, Fête des Mères and Día de la Madre: Celebrating mothers on a set day is a tradition in countries all around the world. Though its history and date - ranging from February to December - may not be too similar everywhere, the idea is the same: giving thanks to those we love most.

The earliest celebrations of a form of Mother´s Day can be traced back to the ancient Greeks and Romans. Festivities celebrating the mother goddesses Rhea

The most known form of Mother´s Day is

and Cybele were fairly similar to the idea

the one typically celebrated on the

of Mother's Day we know today. Another

second Sunday of May. Gaining

historic version of our modern celebration,

popularity ever since its ‘invention’ around

the one that directly birthed the one

the 19th and 20th century, it is now

celebrated in several countries including

celebrated in countries on every

the UK, to be exact, is the Christian festival

continent. To honor her own mother, an

“Mothering Sunday”. Typically celebrated

activist engaged in many feminist issues,

on the fourth Sunday of Lent, it used to be

as well as to celebrate the impact and

the day the Christians would turn back to

sacrifices mothers make for their children,

the Church - which was often referred to

Anna Jarbis from West Virginia organized

as a sort of mother - for a special service.

the first Mother’s Day celebration in 1908.

While the date has lasted until now, this

After a long campaign against the

form of celebrating has evolved into a

alleged bias American holidays had

Mother´s Day very similar to the one

toward male achievements, Jarvis

celebrated in the US, for example. This

managed to get the holiday recognized

transition can be linked to the commercial

by many states by 1912 and finished off

opportunity seen in the festival after World

her fight when the second Sunday in May

War II. Other countries with a Mother´s Day

was officially declared Mother's Day by

connected to Christianity include Spain.

President Woodrow Wilson in 1914.

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Not long after this happened, however, the holiday started being used in a different way than its inventor intended: More and more companies were commercializing it this process continuing today. This ended up turning Anna Jarvis herself against the day she had envisioned to be a personal

Another example of the misuse the special day has been subject to since its

celebration for families, resulting in her

introduction is its connections to the Nazi

filing multiple lawsuits against companies

regime. Although the original adaption in

using the name “Mother's Day” for profit and eventually petitioning against the holiday altogether.

German families in 1923 was a result of the support by florists hoping to capitalize off of it, political parties also used it to their advantage: In 1933, the “German Mothers' Day of Remembrance and Honor” (the original title being “Gedenk- und Ehrentag der deutschen Mütter”) was declared a national holiday to use as propaganda. To further promote the ideal image of a Nazi mother, women received awards for bearing a large number (four for the bronze, six for the silver and at least eight for the gold) of children to support their country. Any actions taken by the Nazis regarding Mother´s Day were reversed after the war, leaving no impact on the holiday celebrated today.

Contrasting the Nazi regime's idea of Mother's Day gravely, in Russia and other Soviet countries, the holiday is connected to International Women's Day, broadening the people honored to be all women, not just literal mothers and the act of bearing children.

Whether it is celebrated on May 1st like in Spain and more, May 8th like in the US, Germany and many others, June 12th like in Luxembourg or any other day of the year; whether it has its roots in religion or in the human act of remembering a loved one: Mother's Day is a time for all families to gather in thankfulness and celebration of mother- and womanhood in general. Happy Mother's Day!

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Madeline Albright: A Life Well Lived and a Path Well Charted by: Caroline Houge

On March 23rd, 2022, Madeleine Albright—the first female Secretary of State for the United States–passed away. Albright lit the torch for many women seeking to enter the field of politics, and more specifically, international diplomacy, a field highly dominated by men in the past. However, not many people in the United States know the magnitude of what she accomplished in her political career, even if they have heard her name. Many women go unrecognized in politics and international diplomacy, often leaving their voices and ideas unheard.

So, what exactly did Allbright fulfill in her roughly twenty-five overall years of service to the American governmental system and four years as Secretary of State? Well, we first have to go back to the humble beginnings that are often overlooked. Madeline Albright was born in Czechoslovakia in 1937 to a father who would go on to enter the world of international diplomacy himself as the Czechoslsovokian Ambassador to Yugoslavia, making the occupation of foreign service a family business. There is no doubt Albright chose the path she did for this reason.

At the age of eleven, Madeleine’s family fled Prague in an attempt to escape the rising political unrest after World War 2. They settled in Colorado and the former Marie Jean Korbel changed her name to Madeleine Albright. Following this, she attained American citizenship in 1957. This new lifestyle in America was just the beginning of Albright’s journey.

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As stated, Albright was brought up on the principles of politics and diplomacy, so in 1959, it did not come as a surprise that she finished at Wellesley College with a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science. Of course she couldn’t stop there. In 1976 she walked out of Columbia University with a Doctorate in Government and Law. Now was the time to hustle for her spot in the cutthroat world of American politics. She had two obstacles standing in her way–she was an immigrant and a woman–two things that the caucasian, male-dominated world would not take easily. But she persisted nonetheless, and started the spark for many other women to enter the world of international politics.

Albright became the United States ambassador to the United Nations in 1993. Until her end of this position in 1997, she helped stop many impending conflicts between the United States and other countries, helped strengthen the already built alliances of the U.S., and even created new ones. After this, she was chosen for the role that would gain her worldwide importance. She became the first Madam Secretary of State under the Clinton Administration and the highest-ranking female governmental figure. During this time she helped the United States form bonds with many Middle Eastern countries, made a place for the U.S. in organizations like NATO and the UN, learned a plethora of languages, and, most importantly, helped preserve the foreign peace by educating the American people to different cultures. Over the next 25 years Hillary Clinton and Condoleezza Rice— the first Woman of Color to be Secretary of State—would follow in her position as female Secretaries of State while other women shared her spirit of national and foreign service, policy-making, and peacekeeping. Rice exemplified this by sending out diplomats to all corners and situations of the world for the greater good, while Clinton secured important Asian and Middle Eastern allies in her time as Secretary. Not to mention after Clinton’s term ended she looked for more opportunities to be involved in politics by putting her name on the 2016 presidential election ballot. Albright’s trail is still continuing to be built today by many more women of ambition and resilience.

Albright, the ever ambitious trailblazer, couldn’t top at simply clerking for lawyers, interning on the hill, or paging for senators. She wanted to make a difference, write her own story, and give the world a name to remember; a name for many more women in politics to live up to in the future, and something that can inspire all aspiring women in politics.

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Stop the Stigma!

End the Shame! by: Pelumi Adekunle

UK retailer Boots recently announced that they are renaming the signage of their menstrual products aisle from ‘feminine hygiene’ to ‘period products’. Whilst some would consider this a step in the right direction, others may view this as taboo.

This March of progress follows years of protests against period shaming and the exclusive term ‘feminine hygiene’ which suggests periods are unhygienic and adds a social stigma around menstruation—a natural bodily process that around half the global population experience. The term ‘ feminine hygiene' is considered problematic for many people, particularly members of the LGBTQ+ community where not all people who menstruate identify as female or feminine. In this sense, ‘Period products’ is a more inclusive term than its predecessor.

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Kiran Gandhi made headlines in 2015 for running the London Marathon whilst menstruating without using any menstrual products to block, catch, or prevent her flow, allowing herself to bleed freely onto her clothing. The athlete stated, “I had the choice that day to reject my own stigma, to reject my own oppression. Millions of women around the world do not.”

She used this act of courage to bring awareness to period stigma not only in the UK but around the world as well. She stated, “I realised how profound it is that we [women] cannot talk about our own bodies and our own menstruation.” Gandhi cites period stigma, the discrimination faced by people who menstruate, claiming it to be “one of the most effective forms of oppression” in denying people to talk comfortably and confidently about their own bodies. Period stigma is an issue globally, whether that be the taxation of menstrual products or their classification as a ‘luxury item’ in the US. In Nepal, individuals have been forced out of their homes whilst on their periods to sleep elsewhere, leaving them vulnerable to animals, bad weather, and sexual assault. The fact that periods are seen as ‘dirty’, ‘unclean’, and ‘impure’ by many adds to the existing stigma, endangering and isolating many people.

While there is plenty more to be done about ending period stigma, it all starts with a name. Words such as ‘sanitary’ used to describe menstrual products imply that periods are

Jamie Kerruish, a beauty director at

unclean, adding to the stigma and

Boots UK, “When it comes to periods,

adding to the shame.

we know retailers can play an important role in changing people’s perceptions, including the words we use to describe products.” This is why Boots UK is “proud to be implementing this change… starting with removing words like ‘hygiene’ and ‘sanitary’ and much more proudly saying ‘period products.”

If periods are named, not blamed humanity could stop period stigma and end the shame!

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1

Trans Women in Women’s Sports by: Veronica Rohlfing As support for the transgender community increases among the general public, questions have arisen regarding male-to-female trans athletes’ eligibility in sports. The Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympic Games featured the first transgender Olympian, a weightlifter from New Zealand named Laurel Hubbard. Many criticized her for competing, arguing that she had an unfair advantage over fellow competitors who were born female biologically.

This argument was amplified when swimmer Lia Thomas broke six records at the Ivy League Championships in February. Despite the fact that Thomas abided by all of USA Swimming’s and the NCAA’s regulations, many argued that she

According to SwimSwam, Thomas faced heckling and booing before her races, and spectators were largely silent while she accepted her medals on the podium. Supporters of Thomas argue that she had abided by regulations and competed fairly;

had an unfair biological advantage

therefore she should not be facing

over other female swimmers. Again,

such harsh criticism. Many critics

these arguments intensified when Thomas became the first transgender Division-1 title-holder when she won the women’s 500-yard freestyle at the national championship in March.

called for stricter regulations to enforce an equal playing field for all women, and some even felt that Thomas should be scratched or disqualified from the meet.

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Many athletic organizations have rules in place to ensure that competition is as fair as possible when it comes to transgender athletes. In January, the NCAA announced that its rules will vary by sport, and should thus be determined by each sports’ national governing body. It also required trans athletes to test and report their testosterone levels throughout their seasons.

A 2021 Sports Medicine study found that testosterone suppression (which Lia Thomas used, as regulations require) can only minimally reduce the muscular advantage that boys gain over girls during puberty. In other words, trans women do experience a biological, muscular advantage, even after taking testosterone suppressants.

However, athletes like Thomas cannot compete in the men’s divisions without being at a significant disadvantage due to taking testosterone suppressants. This leaves trans women in sports stuck, unable to fairly compete against either sex.

Because of this catch-22, many fans of women’s sports are calling on the NCAA as well as international organizations (such as the International Olympic Committee) to enforce new rules to ensure that competition is fair.

According to NBC, many are also calling on organizations to stop using testosterone levels as a means of determining eligibility, as it resulted in extensive and invasive physical examinations.

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Many critics of trans women in women’s sports have used it as an excuse to mask transphobia and spread hateful rhetoric about trans women. As more and more people are identifying as transgender or nonbinary, it becomes more pertinent that we have discussions like these about the place for trans people in sports. However, it is equally pertinent that we respect the identities of these athletes and recognize that they are not the governing bodies of their respective sports; they are just competitors. As organizations work to make sports more inclusive, it’s important to call out transphobia where it is present, and recognize constructive criticism when possible.

The Mistrust of Childless Women in Politics by: Susannah Mayall The number of women in top leadership positions is at an all-time high. A large number of these leaders are also childless. With this comes the question of motherhood, and the damaging association of a woman’s empathy being dependent on her having children.

A study by Pew Research Centre found that 51% of Americans believe that a woman should have children before she runs for high political office;19% said that they should not have children. These statistics reveal how installed the expectation is that women should have children and how costly it potentially is for childless women to run a successful political campaign. This is because female politicians who have no children are seen as disconnected from the aggregate of women, despite US women in their thirties being twice as likely to not have children as their parents.

A noticeable victim of this expectation is former UK Prime Minister Theresa May. During her bid to become the leader of the Conservative Party, rival Andrea Leadsom suggested that she was the better candidate because she was a mother, and so had a “very real stake” in Britain’s future. Comments like this insinuate that childless women are ‘weird’ and ‘unnatural’ and should lose their appeal as political contenders because they have not fulfilled the expectation of motherhood and therefore lack empathy. The same attitude cannot be seen in childless men in politics - a direct comparison being the acceptance that former leader of the Scottish Nationalist Party Alec Salmond admitted to not having children to accelerate his career whereas current leader Nicola Sturgeon had to defend her childless status by opening up about a miscarriage.

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The expectation of children forced onto women means that childless women in politics have to justify their childless status. It is simply not good enough for a woman to choose not to have children - it has to be the result of unfortunate circumstances. During her premiership, Theresa May had to frequently reassure voters that she did want children but it just never happened. Suggesting otherwise would have come across as if she had calculated her career over starting a family which would damage her appeal. As mentioned previously, Nicola Sturgeon had to do the same with an emotional story of her miscarriage.

The problem is also apparent with how childless women in office are given alternative nurturing roles to make up for their lack of children. Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s children were substituted by presenting Germany as her child and comparing refugee children she allowed into Germany as her own. In the US, Kamala Harris had to push that she was a mother figure to her stepchildren by revealing they call her ‘Momala’ at the Democratic National Convention so as to not fall victim to the ‘unempathetic’ trope.

These actions may be small, but they are proof of the underlying mistrust of childless women in politics.

Overall, childless women in politics have to jump through many hoops to be considered a trustworthy and empathetic candidate. The expectation of women to have children exaggerates the anomaly of those who don’t and is wrongly used to discredit them in elections. This is most noticeable in Europe because more women without children have run for high office there, but it is also a problem in the US. After all, 51% of Americans believe that a woman should have children before she runs for high political office.

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The Politics of Abortion and the Expectations of Motherhood

On January 22, 1973, the United States Supreme Court made a landmark ruling on the constitutionality of abortion regulations.

The plaintiff, Jane Roe (a pseudonym used to protect her identity) filed a lawsuit against Henry Wade, a district attorney of Dallas County, Texas where Roe resided. The

by: Hanna Matsukawa Now, nearly 50 years after the landmark case of Roe v. Wade, the politics of abortion remain heavily controversial and contentious. The 1973 precedent allowed

Supreme Court worked to find a balance

abortion laws to vary by state, and the past

between the protection of the right to

few decades have seen further court cases

privacy as stated in the 14th amendment,

on the regulation of abortions. In 2021, a

and the protection of “the potentiality of

new law in Texas brought the battle of

human life.” With a 7-2 majority, the Supreme Court ruling declared abortion restrictions to be unconstitutional, though permitting regulations of “compelling

abortion back to the forefront of American politics. The new law, Senate Bill 8, prohibits abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, a time many women often do

interest” if the fetus was viable (around 24

not know they are yet pregnant. The law

weeks). The Supreme Court decision made

does not make exceptions for rape or

history as it established women’s

incest but does allow abortions in cases of

constitutional right to privacy and protected

medical emergencies to protect the life of

women’s autonomy.

the mother. An unusual aspect of the law is that it cannot be enforced by state officials, rather, it calls for private citizens, connected to the patient or not, to sue anyone who performs or aids an abortion.

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The Texas abortion law was enacted on September 1, 2021, after the United States Supreme Court declined to

Since the enactment of the Texas law, neartotal bans and restrictive abortion legislation have increased around the

intervene and act on an emergency

country. Abortion bans after 15 weeks of

appeal by abortion providers. Since

pregnancy have been enacted in states

September, abortion providers have

such as Florida and Mississippi. In April

continued to challenge the law. The

2022, Oklahoma governor Kevin Stitt signed

nuances of S.B. 8 make it a difficult case to bring to court, as state officials are not in charge of enforcing the law and

a bill that criminalized performing an abortion, creating a statewide ban. The United States Supreme Court is expected to

thus cannot be sued. In December 2021,

make a decision that could alter the

the Supreme Court once again declined

precedent of Roe v. Wade this summer, and

to stop the law but stated that medical licensing officials could be sued. This

most believe it will be overturned, if not severely weakened.

small path of potential action for abortion providers was, however, cut off in March 2022, when the Texas Supreme Court stated that medical licensing officials also do not have the power to enforce the law. This ruling makes it even more difficult to hinder the enforcement of S. B. 8 and bring questions of unconstitutionality to the U.S. Supreme Court, dashing the hopes of abortion rights activists and bringing joy and ease to those who have worked hard to restrict abortions.

While abortion restrictions and bans have increased, there are also states working to solidify and strengthen abortion rights.

Vermont legislature passed an amendment to the state constitution guaranteeing the right to abortions and reproductive health.

California is working to make the state a sanctuary for women seeking abortions from states with restrictive legislation. This push and pull of abortion politics by state is a reflection of the greater political division rising in the country and how the

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demographics of party politics directly affect legislation.

The arguments for and against abortion might seem endless and difficult to measure against one another. However, beyond the points of science and human morality that are often discussed, a small but significant aspect of the abortion and reproductive rights issue lies in society’s view of women and motherhood.

The expectation that women must give birth and become mothers has been a part of our society for centuries. This ingrained belief that a woman’s innate role is motherhood conflicts with the freedom of individual women who choose not to have children, becoming central to the arguments surrounding abortion rights. Some women choose not to have children due to the immense responsibility. The economic, social, and personal costs might be too large for some. While society expects women to have children, there are not a lot of structured support systems in place. There is no set paid maternity leave nationwide. Childcare is also expensive. According to the USDA, the average cost of raising a child born in 2015 up to age 17 in a middle-income family is $233,610. Women with children are less likely to be hired or promoted and are likely to be paid less than their male counterparts. This is known as “the motherhood penalty.” According to the Pew Center for Research, women make an average of 84% less than men. Working mother’s make even less, on

¢ for every dollar a man makes. For

an average only 70

some women, having children can be physically dangerous, economically damaging, or socially inhibiting.

Some women choose not to have children simply because they do not want children.

15

Access to reproductive healthcare and abortion can be seen as a way to ensure

Some argue that before passing legislation that restricts and bans

women’s freedom. Adoption is often a

abortions, society should first work

counter-argument to women choosing

to reform the systems in place that

abortion when they do not want to become

might lead to the want of an

mothers or do not have the economic ability

abortion. Others believe that with

to support a child. While this might seem like

the decrease in abortion

a logical option, it is much more

accessibility, society will be further

complicated. Carrying a child to term can

compelled to improve the systems

be physically and mentally damaging. In

that mothers feel are failing them.

2020, maternal mortality rates increased, with the maternal mortality rate of BIPOC women higher than white women in the United States. According to the CDC, the maternal mortality rate in 2019 was 20.1 deaths per 100,000 live births and went up to 23.8 in 2020. Not only is giving birth dangerous, placing a child for adoption causes large amounts of grief and can be a

against abortion make it difficult to

more difficult choice than choosing

reach a consensus, especially when

abortion. Results of the Turnaway Study, a study that researches “t​ he mental health, ​ physical health, and socioeconomic consequences of receiving an abortion compared to carrying an unwanted

they contain unquantifiable views on human freedom, privacy, and life. While the coming months will see more definitive legislation surrounding abortions, the

pregnancy to term” found that most mothers

respective fights for abortion rights

who wanted an abortion will choose to raise

and restrictions will long remain in

the child over placing them for adoption.

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The many arguments for and

the fabric of American politics.

Education and Accessibility in Politics: by: Lyla Anderson

Education

has

producing outcomes and

How We Can Level the Playing Field long

actors such

partisan

as

played

who

a

have

People

in

political

participation,

choice.

role

identity

who

have

had more education take a more active role in politics, and have clearly defined political identities. This tendency we see in American politics also means that groups of

people

education

who will

have

inevitably

less have

access less

of

to a

voice in politics. When there is a lack of representation, a lack of resources to help them with their political accessibility, and overall their voices are less heard than the educated. While many things play into this phenomenon in today’s world, our history proves this issue goes back generations.

With

the

almost been

all

creation

organization

governments,

deemed

exception.

and

necessary.

With

the

education America

foundation

of has

is

of

no the

United States government, the creation of the

electoral

college

was

deemed

necessary partially in order to separate the educated elections.

and This

uneducated was

in

designed

federal to

make

elections more fair and trustable, but the unseen consequence was that it lessened the

uneducated

Americans'

political

representation and visibility. The electoral college is only one example, and the lack of

accessibility

Americans

in

for

politics

aspect of government.

the bleeds

uneducated into

every

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The modern version of America looks startlingly different, and yet the same, as the America that segregated the educated and uneducated voice in politics. Nicholas Elmer, a respected researcher at the Oxford Review of Education, examined the “education effect” on individual politics. He noted that typically, education is highly correlated with wealth. He found that “educational attainment and low income were disproportionately engaged in forms of direct action”. Low income people, who are less likely to have access to higher education, are not encouraged or heard in the political atmosphere. Furthermore, colleges in America disproportionately distribute funding to white students, as compared to black and hispanic students, and

white

students

are

two

and

a

half

times

more

likely

to

graduate

higher

education than black and hispanic students. Knowing these facts, it's clear that the tendency for the uneducated not to have accessibility in politics (due to a lack of education) inevitably leads to minority communities being underrepresented.

When looking to the future, and how we move forward from this problem, we have a complicated solution on our hands. Undoubtedly, education for

all

needs

people to

be

of

color

more

not

supported,

only but

also encouraged by policy makers and institutions alike. Knowing that having

education

correlates accessibility,

to it

more is

typically political

important

that

policy makers and elected officials need to work on hearing the voices of

uneducated

Americans.

People

without education need access to resources, their voices valued, and overall visibility in politics.

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Founder and Co-Exec. Director

Co-Exec. Director

Rebecca Joseph

Katherine Bronov

Walnut Creek, CA | 16 years old

Philadelphia, PA | 18 years old

We are the co-executive directors of Women In Politics. WIP was founded by me (Rebecca) in 2020 during the start of the pandemic. I am a high school junior from the Bay area and felt that when I first joined the Speech and Debate team at my school girls like myself were underrepresented. I very quickly realized this was not only the case at my school but also in the government on all scales. That was how Women In Politics was born. I (Katherine) am a freshman in college and joined WIP from the very start, back in 2020. I have been passionate about politics since the start of high school and I had searched for organizations and clubs that interest me but found nothing until Women In Politics (WIP) caught my eye. WIP is a very special organization and fascinatingly the first of its kind. Now, almost 2 years later we are insanely grateful to lead this amazing team and for all that we have accomplished. We hope you keep following our journey and we thank you for your support!

Please enjoy this issue!

Magazine Manager Christine Corry

Sacramento, CA | 17 years old I’m Christine, the magazine manager at Women in Politics. My passion for political involvement started very young, and ever since my eyes were opened to the political world, I have searched for new opportunities to have my voice heard. Finding Women in Politics has allowed me the opportunity to have my political voice expressed, and to uplift other youthful voices in the political sphere. I am constantly inspired by the magazine team for all of their passion and hard work. I feel that Women in Politics is making constant strides towards a future which equally represents women in the political field and it is an honor to be a part of that change. Thank you for journeying with us to that future! I hope you enjoy this issue!

Isabella Rinaldi

San Francisco, CA | 16 years old

Editor Leader

Cedar Roach

Dallas, TX | 18 years old

Maci DemMott | Oliva Massey | Ella Grady | Kaylyn Allingham | Lior Cooper | Lila Rowland | Lily Sun | Bella Jasper

Sara Keegan

New York, NY | 17 years old

Rachel Baumann | Christine Corry | Katherine Bronov | Soha Mahapatra | Maeve Gaddipati

DESIGNERS

Magazine Design Leader

EDITORS

Hanna Matsukawa | Lyla Anderson | Susannah Mayall | Veronica Rohlfing | Sage Lahmers | Antonia Paulus | Caroline Houge | Pelumi Adekunle

WRITERS

Writing Leader

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