How Elizabeth Warren overcame the 'Impossible Woman' trap

3 years ago

Html
Text

May 24, 2021

Good morning, Broadsheet readers! Morgan Stanley’s next generation looks like its past, Simone Biles attempts a historic gymnastics move, and Sen. Elizabeth Warren had to overcome a ‘trap’ during her run for president. Have a great Monday.
Today’s guest essay comes to us from Sen. Elizabeth Warren. The following is excerpted from her new book, ‘Persist.’
– The ‘Impossible Woman.’ In 2020, the fact that half a dozen women ran for president was greeted with great fanfare. Yay! But the “Impossible Woman” trap lay just below the surface, and I wasn’t the only one caught in it. Just one example: Kamala Harris, Kirsten Gillibrand, Amy Klobuchar, and I all had better campaign win-loss records than any of the leading men. But the question was never whether a man could be elected. Despite our stronger records, it was always, “Can a woman win?”
Consider the question that regularly got tossed at us from voters and reporters: Are you treated differently as a presidential candidate because you’re a woman? The two possible answers expose the trap. First answer: “Yes, I’m treated differently.” A woman responding that way would immediately hear a swarming mass of people whisper, “Whiner,” or “Weakling,” or “Complainer.” Next would come the inevitable accusation that she’d just “played the gender card,” as well as the predictable comment that she was “just not tough enough.” Now try out the opposite answer: “No, of course not.” That will get a laugh, because at least half the population will wonder what planet she’s living on.
So far as I know, no one ever asked the men in the 2020 race if they felt they were treated differently because they were men. And if that sounds like whining, please reread the preceding paragraph.
When I began thinking seriously about running for president, I knew I didn’t have some magic power that would allow me to succeed where other women had failed. I also knew that, regardless of my gender, I would face plenty of other problems and challenges if I decided to run. But that didn’t mean I would give up. It just meant that I needed to be realistic—and I needed a plan.
By late 2018 I had made up my mind. I would run, and I would run the same way I’d run for the Senate in 2012: I would throw body and soul into it. I would set my sights high and work as hard and as smart as I possibly could. I would build a great team, support grassroots organizing, and be generous to other Democratic candidates. I would talk about the ideas and issues I deep-down cared about. I would lay out every plan that I truly believed could make a difference.
And I would do more. I would put my unflinching determination on display, sounding the call for a fight against some of the most powerful people and corporations in our nation. I would also put my full heart on display, telling stories that only a woman could tell. I would do pinkie promises with little girls and give hugs to their mothers and grandmothers. I would fill up every space with ideas and energy and optimism. I would hope that my being a woman wouldn’t matter so much.
And—please, please, please—I would show everyone that a woman could win.
Read the full excerpt here.
Excerpted from PERSIST by Elizabeth Warren. Published by Metropolitan Books. Copyright © 2021 by Elizabeth Warren. All rights reserved.
The Broadsheet, Fortune’s newsletter for and about the world’s most powerful women, is coauthored by Kristen Bellstrom, Emma Hinchliffe, and Claire Zillman. Today’s edition was curated by Emma Hinchliffe.

A note from Fortune

Ethereum: The lowdown on what it is and why it’s surging

Subscribe to find out why the crypto world has been transfixed. Read more.

ALSO IN THE HEADLINES

- Making moves? After JPMorgan named two women to roles that put them in line for the CEO job last week, Morgan Stanley followed suit with its own leadership shakeup. But Morgan Stanley's next generation looks a lot more like the banking industry's past, with a handful of white men as the top candidates to serve as the next CEO. Bloomberg
- Scary crisis. As the COVID crisis continues in India, pregnant women are among the groups most affected. Many pregnant women are experiencing acute respiratory distress syndrome—more serious and dangerous symptoms of the virus than hospitals saw during its first wave. New York Times
- Perfect 10. Simone Biles made gymnastics history this weekend, successfully landing the Yurchenko double pike during competition. The vault is typically only done by men. "I know it's not the correct one, but I can still do it," Biles said of her first competition attempt of the move. "So why not just show off my ability and athleticism?" ESPN
- Trading expectations. What will Lina Khan do on the Federal Trade Commission? The nominee, who has been cleared by the Senate Commerce Committee but awaits full confirmation, supports greater regulation of Big Tech, blocking more mergers and attacking monopolistic practices. Wall Street Journal
MOVERS AND SHAKERS: Yuko Kawamoto, the only woman to serve on SoftBank's board, will resign her board seat; she's clashed with Masayoshi Son over governance issues. The Associated Press fired reporter Emily Wilder over a violation of its social media policy after prominent GOP politicians questioned the news organization over Wilder's activism for Palestinian rights when she was in college; the firing has prompted criticism. PSE&G promoted SVP and COO Kim Hanemann to president and COO. CNN national correspondent Suzanne Malveaux and Americares head of strategic partnerships Stephanie Kauffman will be cochairs of the International Women's Media Foundation; Washington Post chief communications officer Kristine Coratti Kelly joined the organization's board.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

- Fraudulent lifestyle? In the Theranos fraud trial, prosecutors will be able to present to jurors Elizabeth Holmes's "appetite for fame and fortune" by describing her travel on private jets and use of multiple assistants. A judge determined that prosecutors can argue that she had a financial incentive to commit fraud. Bloomberg
- Vaccine official. After top male officials in Canada's military were accused of sexual misconduct, Canada promoted women generals into senior roles. One of the appointments is Brigadier-General Krista Brodie, who will now oversee the logistics of Canada's vaccine rollout. Reuters
- Tough negotiator. Rose Gottemoeller was the first woman to negotiate a nuclear arms deal with Russia. In a new piece, the former deputy secretary general of NATO writes that the Russians on the other side of the table "never let her forget it," with her gender influencing nearly every aspect of the negotiations. Politico

ON MY RADAR

The anti-Victoria's Secret underwear revolution is here Wall Street Journal
Yearbook photos of girls were altered to hide their chests New York Times
Why Oprah allowed herself to look bad in her series The Me You Can't See Oprah Daily

PARTING WORDS

"It’s hard because I have, like, three projects due on Monday, and I haven’t even touched them."
-Bela Salazar, 16, on her band the Linda Lindas going viral—and securing a record deal—after their performance of their song "Racist Sexist Boy"