“Ask Me One More Time”: Women in Politics
“Ask Me One More Time”: Women in Politics
By Busola Awobode
Currently, in Massachusetts, only 31.5% of state representatives identify as women. This means that those who identify as men outnumber women about 3:1 in state legislature. Meanwhile, women outnumber men in Massachusetts. And these numbers while jarring are quite standard regardless of location. After more than two hundred decades, the United States welcomed our First Female Vice President who is also the first Vice President of Black and South Asian descent. So, if in two hundred years we are still experiencing firsts such as these, it is anticipated that women are severely underrepresented in politics and even more so women in communities of color.
To combat this underrepresentation and bring more women into politics, recently, Elect Southcoast- an organization that raises awareness around local elections- hosted a panel “Connecting your purpose to community: A round table with South Coast Women in Public service” moderated by Jordan Latham, Colleen Dawicki, Rayana Grace and Jennifer Downing. This panel hoped to demonstrate pathways to public service and the roles that women can play in these positions. Additionally, the panel showcased women who have successfully taken political positions in their communities and serve as role models for those who wish to start their political careers.
To kick off the panel, participants were asked what they felt were the biggest obstacles to women running for political positions. In response, they cited time as a major factor, many stating that their families and children took priority over political ambitions. It is known that societally, women tend to take harder hits to their careers and professional ambitions when they have children, so, unsurprisingly, this resonated with many of the participants. However, ‘family’ is certainly not the only obstacle for women in politics.
According to Shannon Jenkins, a Political Science Professor at Umass Dartmouth, women on average exhibit lower political ambition than their male counterparts, they often feel underqualified or underprepared as opposed to men who often scrutinize themselves less, they are regularly required to work harder and longer to achieve the same goals as men and they are often overlooked and less informed in political situations. In fact, it is believed that on average women have to be asked an average of seven times before they commit to running for office. Nevertheless, Jenkins states that “when women run, women win”.
Throughout the event, panelists such as Jan de Silva and Jennifer Carloni spoke briefly about their work on boards, their journeys to their positions and discussed some of the things they have been able to implement in their positions. And while they all are doing inspiring work worth recognition, one salient message stood out. “Just show up”. Show up in spaces you want to occupy, show up for the people who need representation, show up for yourselves and invest in the idea that your ambitions are attainable. It is important to strive to be the representation we want to see, not only to inspire others but to speak for and enrich our respective communities.
Because the importance of this sort of representation cannot be overstated. We need women in positions of political power who can represent and advocate for their communities as well as people who might share their experiences. We need players from communities of color at decision tables who can bring their interests into conversations and bridge divides between the local communities and politics. We need individuals who are capable of leading because women are more than capable of leading, and it is up to them to take their place in politics.
