Miss Representation

If you ask a class of first graders how many of them want will become president one day, most of them will raise their hands. Ask a high school class and the chances of someone raising their hand are significantly lower.

Ask a girl if she hopes to become president one day and the chances of her saying yes are even smaller still. 

This idea of women in leadership positions and power is one of many gender issues explored in the documentary Miss Representation. It addresses how women are portrayed in the media and I'll be analyzing specifically women of political power. 

According to the documentary, women represent only 17% of the U.S. Congress. By that statistic alone, it is clear that there is a lack of a female presence and voice in terms of who is being heard when decisions are made. 

In the documentary, Condoleezza Rice (former Secretary of State under the Bush Administration) recalls the time when changes were being considered for Title 9*. Rice remembers going up to Bush with other female members of congress and basically telling him, "You don't know what it was like before Title 9, having to do bake sales just to get enough money to take your team to a basketball tournament". 

The obvious problem with a male dominant society, in terms of who is holding office and high positions in places of business, is that the female perspective and rationale is lacking. 

However, female representation in such positions cannot change until young girls witness other women in power. A point made in the documentary is that what someone aspires to do is inspired by something else. Only men have ever been president, so how can young women aspire to hold that same position when no other woman before them has done it?

Before the next generation of young women can begin aspiring to lead in powerful positions, whether that be of our government or business establishments, they need to see strong women in similar positions making effective change. 

The United States has made leaps and bounds in terms of giving women a voice and affording them equal rights. We can see, with strong female political leaders like Condoleezza Rice and Hillary Clinton, that there is a future for women in politics. 


Considering how far we have come as a nation, it's sometimes hard to see how much more progress still needs to be made for women's rights. How do you see the role of women changing in our country? What progress needs to made or has been made already? 

*Title 9 states that "No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance..." (United States Code Section 20)
For an article published during Title 9 debates, click here.