ArpitGarg's Weblog

Hillary Clinton was recently accused of using the “Woman Card” for electoral purposes. She reacted by selling a 5$ Woman Card on her website. Since Hillary is not liked among woman voters, more so the millennials, question is what is the Woman Card and does it really work?

Historically speaking women have suffered a lot. Ever since the patriarchy began, they were relegated to second class citizens by affluence males. Before the suffrage movement, even the ‘Free World’ did not allow voting rights to women. They were called witches and burnt at stake. Wars took a tall on women. They were raped, murdered by the victors ever since the first war took place. Men can’t even begin to understand the pain women have suffered over the centuries.

But the issue here is different. When Hillary is accused of using Woman card, it is about Hillary and not woman in general. To generalize this argument, Women who are in places of authority, who are among the elites of the society, who are in Power, they should not play the Woman Card.

Going a bit local, in India we have reservations for SC/ST’s, who as a group have been subjected to innumerable hostilities and atrocities by forward castes and affluent of the society. The reservation in higher education and Govt. jobs was seen as an Affirmative Action to correct this sin. Over the years what has happened is, once the person got the benefit of reservation, his family members and subsequent generations kept availing the benefit. Due to this the SC/ST’s who really needed it, didn’t get it. The people who already rose to the upper echelon of the society due to the reservation (which was the purpose), kept availing it again and again (which was not the purpose). Thus they kept playing the Category Card so to say. They hampered the growth of their own Category by gobbling up the benefit which should have ideally gone to SC/ST’s who are still in lower strata.

Same is the case when Hillary plays the Woman Card. She is not supposed to. She has been in Power too long to be allowed to play that card. She preys on the right of women who really needs help from society. She hampers the growth of deserving women.

Recently there has been a trend of affluent, politically powerful, elite women playing woman card and victim card. This is totally unacceptable. I think women in US understand what Hillary is doing and hence millennial women are supporting Bernie. In India too more and more women get it. They have come to realize that powerful women are eating up their share by playing the woman card. It’s time that deserving women should get their share.