TresSugar

A Picture For Every Year of Hillary Clinton's National Service

Annie Scudder — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 12:05:53 PST

"I think after 20 years, and it will be 20 years, of being on the high wire of American politics and all of the challenges that come with that, it would be probably a good idea to just find out how tired I am," Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told State Department employees yesterday. Hillary has been on the national stage for two decades, as a presidential candidate's wife, first lady, senator from New York, presidential candidate herself, and now as secretary of state.

Although she didn't attain her goal of becoming the first woman elected president in the US, Hillary Clinton has blazed trails for women. Hillary was active in policy making during her time as first lady, and now as secretary of state she champions the rights of women around the world. When she does eventually step down, which she says she'll do once President Obama nominates a replacement, many Americans will likely miss her presence, as nearly two-thirds of Americans have a favorable opinion of Hillary today. Until she does retreat back into private life, let's look back at a picture for each year of Hillary Clinton's national service.

Moving Lines From Hillary Clinton's Gay Rights Speech

Annie Scudder — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 11:30:42 PST

Speaking before the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton took up the issue of gay rights. After reviewing the adoption of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the hard-fought victories achieved since for racial and religious minorities as well as women, Hillary said, "Today, I want to talk about the work we have left to do to protect one group of people whose human rights are still denied in too many parts of the world today." Here are some of the best lines from her speech, which some have called the "I Have a Dream" moment for the global LGBT community.

It starts at home: "Until 2003, it was still a crime in parts of our country. Many LGBT Americans have endured violence and harassment in their own lives, and for some, including many young people, bullying and exclusion are daily experiences. So we, like all nations, have more work to do to protect human rights at home."
LGBT rights are human rights: "Like being a woman, like being a racial, religious, tribal, or ethnic minority, being LGBT does not make you less human. And that is why gay rights are human rights, and human rights are gay rights."
LGBT people are members of the global community: "In reality, gay people are born into and belong to every society in the world. They are all ages, all races, all faiths; they are doctors and teachers, farmers and bankers, soldiers and athletes; and whether we know it, or whether we acknowledge it, they are our family, our friends, and our neighbors."
Religion is not an excuse: "Perhaps most challenging, issue arises when people cite religious or cultural values as a reason to violate or not to protect the human rights of LGBT citizens. This is not unlike the justification offered for violent practices towards women like honor killings, widow burning, or female genital mutilation."

Would the US Be Better Off With Hillary Clinton as President?

Annie Scudder — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 12:10:32 PDT

With the 2012 election in the near future and a slew of challenges presently facing the nation, some people are asking if America would be better off with Hillary Clinton leading the country as the first female president. This weekend, The New York Times Sunday Magazine asked WWHHD - or "What would Hillary have done?" The piece, written by former Hillary supporter Rebecca Traister, points out that Democrats have been fantasizing about an imaginary Clinton administration lately, speculating that Hillary would have been tougher when dealing with the economy and Republicans.

Traister describes how Hillary's former "faults" are now being painted as strengths:

Her storied toughness was then read as craven ambition that was going to tear her party apart. Her knowledge of how Congress works was seen as part of her dynastic and corrupt Beltway privilege. And her engagement with working-class voters, well, that was just pandering to her supposedly racist base.

Ultimately, the article makes the obvious point that there's no way to know what would have happened - and in fact, there's good evidence that Hillary's presidency would look a lot like Obama's. Even so, would you rather have Hillary leading the country? Weigh in below.

Picture It: It's All Greek to Me

Annie Scudder — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 12:15:09 PDT

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton assesses a nude statue as she tours Athens's Acropolis Museum yesterday. She's in Greece to sign a cultural memorandum of understanding to combat the illegal trade of Greek antiques that often show up in foreign museums. See some more photos, including one of her getting extra friendly with Greece's foreign minister, now.

Saudi Arabian Women Have an Ally in Hillary Clinton

Annie Scudder — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 11:30:42 PDT

Last week women all the way in Kiev, Ukraine, came out to support Saudi Arabian women's right to drive by going topless and sticking their butts out the window in front of the Saudi Arabian embassy. Yesterday, the women's rights activists protesting the Saudi Arabian ban on women driving cars or bicycles added some more modest and high-profile support to their ranks when Hillary Clinton backed their efforts.

The secretary of state said, "What these women are doing is brave and what they are seeking is right." Hillary also added her personal feelings, explaining, "I am moved by it and I support them." Last Friday, women of the Women2Drive campaign protested the ban by going behind the wheel and defying it. On that day, Hillary placed a call to the country's foreign minister to discuss the protest.

Hillary may have spoken up in a response to an open letter the Saudi women sent her. They wrote: "In our opinion what has happened in Saudi Arabia over the last month - the launch of the largest women's rights campaign in Saudi history - constitutes a moment that calls for public diplomacy, a moment in which it is incumbent upon champions of women's rights like yourself to deviate from the norm." Do you think Hillary has an obligation to speak up?

Picture It: Mid Laugh

Annie Scudder — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 14:20:11 PDT

Hillary Clinton shows her good humor today as German Chancellor Angela Merkel presents her with a potentially awkward present: a framed front-page article comparing their midsections. The German Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper ran a photo of both powerful women from the waist down, asking readers "Which one is Merkel and which one is Clinton?" The White House is hosting the gift-bearing German leader tonight for a state dinner. See her kick off the fun with Hillary now.

The Irony of Photoshopping Out Hillary

Colleen Barrett — Tue, 10 May 2011 17:10:01 PDT

After two ultra-Orthodox Jewish newspapers photoshopped Hillary Clinton from the now-iconic photo of White House top guns watching Navy Seals pounce Osama bin Laden's compound, there are a lot of questions. Like, why didn't they just crop it?

It's certainly not that women don't work in the Hasidic Jewish community. With long skirts and covered heads, they may look like simple homemakers. But they are generally educated (definitely high school if not college), often hold full-time jobs, and frequently are family breadwinners, especially if it frees up husbands for more scholarly, religious pursuits. But the real reason has nothing to do with women in the workplace; it's about women in photographs.

Last night Stephen Colbert explained the edit when he quoted The Jewish Week. It wrote that at least one newspaper's editorial policy was to "not intentionally include any images of women in the paper because it could be considered sexually suggestive." The paper, De Voch, has since apologized, saying it was not for racial, social, or political reasons, but because modesty is the best policy. And modesty means no pictures of women, regardless of stature.

Source: Flickr User The White House

Speed Read - Hillary Clinton Is Ready to Move on From Her High-Profile Life

TresSugar — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 10:00:22 PDT

Hillary Clinton is almost ready to leave public life after decades- People
South Dakota requires women to listen to anti-abortion lecture - Double X
Remembering Elizabeth Taylor: her life in pictures - PopSugar
Judge rejects Google's plans for books - WSJ
New photos allegedly from Silvio Berlusconi's bunga bunga parties revealed - Telegraph
Egyptian women protesters forced to take "virginity tests" - Amnesty
Mad Men might not be back until 2012 - NY Times
Why are Prince William and Kate Middleton asking for donations to charity? - BBC

Hillary May Not Empower All, but She's No Poster Woman For Nepotism

Colleen Barrett — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:00:00 PDT

Powerful women are supposed to be good for females, especially girls. Held up as shiny beacons of possibility, they're an antidote to the women-can't-be-powerful stereotype. But not all high-profile women elicit empowerment. As soon as a hint of nepotism or a dash of luck is sniffed out, their ability to inspire is extinguished. So for the role-model effect to work, the woman's success must be perceived as earned through innate ability and effort.

This inspiration fail has been dubbed the "Hillary Clinton effect," and even that is tinged with unfairness. Researchers behind the study's finding - and coiners of the term - at Texas Christian University admit Hillary is a divided role model: some perceive her stature as unearned, a torch passed down by her president husband, while others see her as determined and unwavering, no stranger to the grit of hard work.

I'd say Hillary's a bit of both. See why below.

Secretary of High-Profile Weddings Offers Advice to Middletons and Royal Family

TresSugar — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 12:10:10 PST

"My advice is just enjoy it, enjoy it because it's [the] most extraordinary experience to see your daughter marrying someone who loves her, who wants to take care of her and you just want to be part of their happiness."

- Hillary Clinton hands over the mother-of-most-famous-bride crown to Kate's mother Carole Middleton and offers advice to both families as the countdown to 2011's most high-profile wedding begins. Savoring the moment may sound trite, but her description of the joy parents feel when their children marry comes straight from experience.