My heart hurts. There is so little outcry about the choice of a man for the Supreme Court. Of course a man will be chosen. Only one woman sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee. And it has become politically embarrassing to talk about gender equity. That just seems so 60's to some people.
We don't need to talk about the unitary executive, CAP, or mutual funds to find a reason to oppose Alito. He doesn't have a womb or a vagina. That is enough reason. The majority of the people in this country are criminally underrepresented in the most important body of the land. Bush did his little dance to pay lip service to the women and then sold them out quickly.
So I call on everyone who reads this diary, and on everyone you talk to, to write to your Senators and tell them that the only choice is to put a woman on the Supreme Court. There is no room for any other political discussion until that one is answered. If hundreds of thousands of us rose up tomorrow and said "You must put a woman in this position" it would be heard. I am now even willing to accept someone who is clearly conservative over Alito the neutral. We will get conservatism anyway. At least it will be someone who will understand what it is to be a woman in this era - who will know what it means to read of women being stoned because of an affair, or killed by family members because they were raped.
Afghanistan, Iraq, France, the Scandinavian countries, African congresses - all have more women represented than the United States. Don't you think that some of our priorities might change if there were a clear woman's voice heard in this land?
I am more angry and discouraged than I have ever been. Not just because a woman wasn't nominated, but also because there has been so little outcry. Please join me in my outrage and write or call your Senator now.