OPINION:
It was only 98 years ago that women won their suffrage after a long struggle to be seen as a valid and vital part of the American electoral system. How disappointed our foremothers would be that in 2018, not all women’s voices would be treated equally.
There are many on the Left today who do not believe that a woman’s voice is valid unless it will serve to validate their particular narrative and agenda. For independent or conservative women, the #hashtag hypocrisy of the Left knows no bounds.
If those claiming to #BelieveAllWomen or seeking to #EmpowerWomen really wanted to believe and empower you, your ability and potential, why would they: a) perpetually call you a victim, b) advocate that you need their protection, and c) try convince you that if you don’t do what they say, your rights and perhaps your very life are in danger?
Then there’s the Women’s March, calling for solidarity and celebrating every type of diversity among women - except diversity of thought and opinion. They shout marching orders through megaphones and tweet their far-left talking points, and women are expected to blindly follow. When women dare to fall out of line, or go off script, they have been labeled “gender traitors,” “rape apologists,” “white supremacists,” or worse.
It may come as a surprise to the Women’s March and a great many media pundits, but there are plenty of American women who see through this ruse - and what is being sold to us as “good for women” just doesn’t make sense.
It doesn’t make sense to vote for the candidate who tries to convince us that by virtue of just being a woman we are stuck in a perpetual “victimhood” status, while conveniently portraying themselves as the superhero we need for protection. It doesn’t make sense to vote for those who claim they want to empower women but would restrict the rights of the estimated 12 million to 17 million female gun owners in this country.
It doesn’t make sense to vote for those who talk a big game about the “rights” of women, yet remain silent as countless female babies are aborted day after day, year after year - silencing their voices and denying their right to even exist.
It doesn’t make sense to vote for those who, in the final days before the election, think that instead of needing to work hard and appeal to your brain to win your vote, that you will be automatically swayed by celebrities. Celebrities who, with their personal wealth, armed guards and gated housing, perpetually call for more regulation, higher taxes, restriction on private gun ownership and open borders.
Voting should not be based on what is popular or trending. Voting should be based on what we know, our value system, logic and reasoning. Feelings can be so manipulated by others—they can make us want something to be true so much that we become willing to believe it.
When you strip away all the appeals to emotion and think for yourself, the picture becomes much more clear. If you can listen to reason over rhetoric, to not be bullied by the fear-mongering and scapegoating, to boil it down to simply facts, figures and freedom - it just makes sense to vote a different way.
What makes sense is to vote on the side of life, of liberty and of limited government - because only when government is limited does our potential to pursue our happiness become unlimited.
What makes sense is voting for policies that seek to create equal opportunity, instead of voting for people who want to mandate equal outcomes. Any party or candidate who says they can do this is either foolish or lying. Allowing the government to determine the outcome of our lives or the limit of our achievements is the antithesis of freedom and the enemy of empowerment.
All issues are women’s issues, and anyone who says differently is devaluing the vote and voice of women in this country.
I will cast my vote to support leaders that will continue to grow our economy and create jobs. A strong economy creates the best opportunity for prosperity for American women, allowing them to pursue their dream and forge their own path to the future. I will cast my vote for those who respect my intelligence and worth, not those who perpetually paint women as victims to make us pawns in their political agenda.
So this is my challenge to American women: Before you go vote, think. I’m not asking you to think like me, just think for yourself. Question everything. Have they earned your vote or are they expecting you to do what you are being told? Do they truly speak to all the issues, are are they just telling you what you want to hear? Open your eyes and look around. See yourself as the politicians see you; listen to they way they talk about and to you.
Then stand on your own two feet and go vote.
Amy Clark, a sixth-generation Texan, is the former vice chair of the Republican Party of Texas and longtime conservative activist.
Follow the author
Please read our comment policy before commenting.