Pearls, Politics and Power - How I was Inspired

I really enjoyed this week's reading. I thought that Kunin had many inspirational tributes to women that have struggled to make it in the political world on all levels. Each story made me very proud to be a women, and deepened my passion for wanting to evoke change in our current political system. Testimonials from women who have actually have lived politics tell it best... and I am a sucker for most inspirational publications.

I found Kunin’s last chapter most helpful for me to put some meat behind all true essence of the book. "How do we prepare more young women for public life?" She offers several suggestions, some which are stronger than other. First, teach community service and support programs to do the same (interestingly, the Teach for America program, which Kunin references as a good model, was started by a female, sure not a coincidence). Teach for America, though is very dear to my family's heart. My sister participated in the organization for two years and grew more in those two years than in the rest of her life.

It was also mentioned to - reinvigorate feminism as an exercise in collectively imagining what is possible, politically speaking, for women, and make public office a civic virtue. I think this is seriously wrong. Women should be treated as citizens with a civic duty to abide by the law, pay taxes, participate in community activities, work for the betterment of this country, etc. NOT to feel that they have let fellow women or this country down for following their inner passion (not in politics). I was a little red in the face when reading this... but glad I kept going, because I really resonated with the last piece.

The proposition that I appreciated the most was the notion to educate young women to exercise power, encourage community participation, and to show them that if they have the passion there is a place for them at the table. I feel very fortunate that in my life experiences I have continually been encouraged to reach for the stars, coupled with awareness to never view myself as superior or beneath anyone else, but view myself as an equal. As an equal I must work as hard if not harder than everyone around me (man, women, black or white). Very similar to the values that this country was founded on... We all have our challenges, but turning those challenges into opportunities is the secret to real moments of success.

An avenue that I have decided to focus on in my life to make that next step towards my goals a reality is through education. I really liked one of Kunin ending quotes, “Education, the culture, and laws have to change, to open the doors wider to the halls of power and to reprioritize the decisions that are made within those halls to achieve the government that more accurately reflects the will of the people.” Easier said than done, of course, but makes me want to succeed that much more! Great reading choice!