Democratic leader showing new generation that femininity isn’t a drawback in politics
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Valerie Sullivan
SPECIAL TO THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Californian Nancy Pelosi, the first female speaker of the House, is drawing accolades as a role model for young women.
WASHINGTON — For a new generation of girls, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is something of a modern-day Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.
Yet, unlike the stylish, idolized wife of President John F. Kennedy who became a fashion and cultural icon to millions of American women of that era, Pelosi is a glamorous role model based on her own accomplishments, say pop-culture experts, fellow female lawmakers and several young women interviewed recently.
"No longer are women solely the backbone; we’re the candidate," said Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones, D-Cleveland.
The important message for young women to take from Pelosi’s success, said Rep. Deborah Pryce, R-Upper Arlington, "is that glass ceilings in politics are largely an anachronism now."
In Pelosi, young women have found a powerful yet fashionable female role model, said Julia Pflaum, an Ohio University senior and president of the student club Fashion Associates.
"She is kind of breaking down barriers, in the sense that you can dress nicely but also have something to say, and I think a lot of women look up to that and respect that," said Pflaum, of Hudson, Ohio.
"Nancy Pelosi is very much interested in fashion, but ... she knows that her true impact on the world is in politics and providing a good role model as a powerful and successful woman."
Pelosi’s allure as a role model for young women underscores the ever-changing ideal for women, said Susan Schulz, editor-in-chief of CosmoGIRL magazine.
Girls today want success but have also "seen the sacrifices that women have had to make … in their personal lives" to achieve it, Schulz said.
As a result, they are now looking to role models who have a balance between the two, Schulz added.
"Nancy Pelosi (had) a family life. She raised her five kids before she went into public service. She is a woman," Schulz said. "She’s not trying to play the game the way the boys play it. She’s brought her own set of rules, her own style."
Shelly Branch, co-author of the book What Would Jackie Do — An Inspired Guide to Distinctive Living, said the evolution of the role of women in politics is largely "what society has been willing to accept."
She credits such women as Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton for having broken the mold.
But even as Clinton helped break down barriers for what women can accomplish in politics — going from first lady to U.S. senator from New York to 2008 Democratic presidential frontrunner — she has been more of a polarizing force.
She took a while to develop a glamorous fashion style and offended many women with her comment years ago that she would not want to stay home and bake cookies, Branch said.
Pelosi has been a force in Democratic politics for years as a lawmaker from California. But she burst onto the national scene this year without much known about her when she was handed the gavel as the first female speaker and her achievement was lauded by President Bush last month during his State of the Union address.
What sets Pelosi apart among female officials — and is turning the heads of young women across the country — is that, like Onassis, Pelosi has achieved success while embracing her femininity, from her actions to her wardrobe, observers say.
Like Onassis, Pelosi is feminine, but also confident and strong, said Alison Brower, Redbook magazine executive editor.
On the day she was sworn in, Pelosi "chose to showcase her femininity," Tubbs Jones said. "She invited all these children to come up to the speaker’s podium and get a feel for what it was like … for banging the gavel and being in the chair."
Pelosi’s fashion sense is also earning nods — a style that’s "clean, elegant, simple, very much in the vein of a Jackie O," Branch said.
"(Pelosi) is someone who’s obviously given some consideration to her appearance and the clothes she wears, and this is very same idea that Jackie had, that your clothes say a lot about you," Branch said.
A generation of young women are paying attention to a woman who sits second in the line of succession to the presidency, said Beth Kaltenbach, an Ohio State University sophomore and president of the OSU chapter of the ONE Campaign, an international AIDS advocacy group.
"Nancy Pelosi has achieved the powerful position of speaker of the House without giving up her beliefs and character as a woman," Kaltenbach said.
"For this reason, she is a role model to many young women today, who hope to follow in her footsteps and achieve great roles in our society as well."
http://www.dispatch.com/national-sto...227-A3-01.html
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Originally Posted by GW in Ohio
