khrushcheva113_AlexWroblewskiGettyImages_AOCwomenrepresentatives

Women on Top in the World’s Democracies

Jul 24, 2019 Nina L. Khrushcheva

In today’s world, men continue to hold disproportionate power, which they often use in ways that prevent women from gaining more. But, judging by the fast-growing number of women on the political stage – and given that they include fascists, liberals, greens, and socialists – the days of male supremacy are numbered.

MOSCOW – US President Donald Trump’s recent declaration that four Democratic congresswomen of color – Ayanna Pressley, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, and Rashida Tlaib – should “go back” to their countries was another reminder of his blatant racism and sexism. (Three of them were born in the United States, and the fourth became a US citizen as a teenager.) But it also highlighted the rising profiles of women in politics – a trend that will continue, no matter how much it terrifies insecure men like Trump.

A century ago in Europe, leading suffragists – such as Inessa Armand, Rosa Luxemburg, and Clara Zetkin – had little choice but to seek powerful men to validate their aspirations. One such man was Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin, who advocated the elimination of “old laws which placed woman in inequality in relation to man.” Armand was (allegedly) romantically involved with Lenin, and Zetkin interviewed him on “the women’s question” in 1920, following his 1919 speech on the “tasks of the working women’s movement in the Soviet republic.”

This approach was understandable, but it proved ineffective. Lenin insisted that only socialism – with its promise of equality for all – could liberate women. “Wherever the power of capital is preserved,” he declared in that speech, “the men retain their privileges.”

We hope you're enjoying Project Syndicate.

To continue reading, subscribe now.

Already have an account? Log in

Support High-Quality Commentary

US President-elect Joe Biden may have promised a “return to normalcy,” but the truth is that there is no going back. The world is changing in fundamental ways, and the actions the world takes in the next few years will be critical to lay the groundwork for a sustainable, secure, and prosperous future.

For more than 25 years, Project Syndicate has been guided by a simple credo: All people deserve access to a broad range of views by the world’s foremost leaders and thinkers on the issues, events, and forces shaping their lives. At a time of unprecedented uncertainty, that mission is more important than ever – and we remain committed to fulfilling it.

But there is no doubt that we, like so many other media organizations nowadays, are under growing strain. If you are in a position to support us, please subscribe now.

As a subscriber, you will enjoy unlimited access to our On Point suite of long reads and book reviews, Say More contributor interviews, The Year Ahead magazine, the full PS archive, and much more. You will also directly support our mission of delivering the highest-quality commentary on the world's most pressing issues to as wide an audience as possible.

By helping us to build a truly open world of ideas, every PS subscriber makes a real difference. Thank you.

Subscribe Now

new comment has been posted. new comments have been posted.

0 Comments on this paragraph, 2 in all 2 Comments on this article

j. von Hettlingen Jul 28, 2019

Nina L. Khrushcheva says men are still holding “disportionate power, although half of the world’s population is made up of women. They are also using their power to prevent women from gaining more clout. As the number of women in politics is growing – “and given that they include fascists, liberals, greens, and socialists – the days of “male supremacy are numbered.” Nevertheless, it still takes time to close the gender gap in interest in politics.
The author names a long list of powerful and influential women in the private sector and in public life across the globe, who do not necessarily need “men’s validation. But that does not mean that they would not welcome men’s support, whether political, personal, or even artistic.” In some countries, women ascended to their political position through a dynastic channel. Female political leaders are often sisters, wives, widows or daughters of important politicians.
History shows that women would not have gained their right to vote without the support of their male counterparts, because many powerful men had sought to impede them, worrying about the threat empowered women could pose.
The author says Vladimir Lenin was supportive of women’s suffrage and gender equality a century ago, as part of socialism’s appeal. In the Soviet Union, most women had jobs, yet only few had careers. Her own grandmother “was forced to give up her position as an educator” after her grandfather, Nikita Khrushchev, was appointed the head of Ukraine’s Communist Party in 1937. “She was supposed to serve as an example for other working wives of political functionaries.”
In today’s Russia, there are very few women in Putin’s government. Last year, controversial amendments to Russian law were passed to decriminalise some forms of domestic violence, leading to a dramatic decline in reported incidents.
Although women in many European countries gained their voting rights mainly after World War II, in general, they have come quite far in their pursuit of careers. A few – Margaret Thatcher, Angela Merkel and others in many European countries – have gone down in history as their first female leaders, despite facing many more obstacles than men. Many have been as good as their male counterparts, if not even better. But they are the exception rather than the rule.
According to a survey, girls are significantly less interested in politics than boys by the age of 15. This phenomenon has been observed in more than a dozen rich countries, and could have a negative impact on their future development. If women are less interested in politics, they may be less likely to take part in it, including voting or running for office. And their views - particularly on social issues like workplace equality, parental leave and child care, which they care about on average more than men do - may not be adequately represented in government.
The author mentions Philipp Stölzl, a German director who is staging a contemporary adaptation of Giuseppe Verdi’s Rigoletto in Austria. “In his view, Rigoletto – in which a court jester attempts to end the licentious activities of his powerful employer – is the ideal opera for the #MeToo era. Perhaps that is why a woman, Australian opera director Lindy Hume, is bringing her own adaptation of Rigoletto to Seattle next month.”
There is another classical play which has not captured as much attention: “Assembleywomen” by Aristophanes, the comic playwright of ancient Athens. Written in 391 BC, it is a wonderfully fun play, a comic fantasy about war, power, and gender, with women being in charge of government and men reduced to feeble, pitiable creatures in drag.
The women of Athens, led by Praxagora, decide to take over the city’s parliament, the Assembly, arguing for a number of radical reforms. Women should have all the power in Athens, all property should be held communally, and there should be complete sexual liberation, with people free to go to bed with whomever they choose. (The old and ugly are to get first dibs on sexual partners, so as to ensure that they’re not left out.)
As a play, “Assembleywomen” is really ahead of its time in terms of its presentation of female power. True, Aristophanes seemed to be implying that women could do a better job of running things than men. Yet it would have been seen as a joke poking fun at the incompetence and mismanagement of the - men-only - Assembly rather than as a genuine call for parliamentary reform.The joke at the heart of the play is actually a rather conservative one – It is in fact sexist deep down – because it turns on the idea that even a load of women could make a better job of it than a bunch of clowns.
In this respect, Assemblywomen is not only fun, but truly radical and progressive, because it anticipates so many of the political ideas that people do take seriously nowadays - gender equality, and the idea of a fair society, where people are not discriminated against on the grounds of appearance or age, and, if not complete sexual freedom, then at least a less puritanical approach to sex and marriage.
A new reply to this comment has been posted.
Elizabeth Pula Jul 25, 2019

This comment was removed by a moderator. Replies to this comment may also be deleted. Please note that we moderate comments to ensure the conversation remains topically relevant. We appreciate well-informed comments and welcome your criticism and insight. Please be civil and avoid name-calling and ad hominem remarks.
A new reply to this comment has been posted.
P. Kamath Jul 24, 2019

Um....”..Democratic congresswomen of color – Ayanna Pressley, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, and Rashida Tlaib...”. Once ,in USA, If one is of African ancestry, they were called , people of colour! Now it seems the definition has become broader! Among the group AOC and Tlaib are of Latino and Middle Eastern ancestry! So how can any one call them people of Colour?
A new reply to this comment has been posted.

https://prosyn.org/0GU0W9S

Cookies and Privacy

Women on Top in the World’s Democracies

To continue reading, subscribe now.

Support High-Quality Commentary

New Comment

Email this piece to a friend

Contact us

Log in/Register

Cookies and Privacy

Women on Top in the World’s Democracies

To continue reading, subscribe now.

Support High-Quality Commentary

Edit Newsletter Preferences

Set up Notification