Even before Bernie entered, the Democratic 2020 presidential primary field was crowded AF.
Officially announced so far (in order of well-know to who?):
Elizabeth Warren Bernie Sanders Cory Booker Kamala Harris Amy Klobuchar Julián Castro Tulsi Gabbard John Delaney Andrew Yang
Has an "exploratory" committee (read: announcement likely coming soon):
Kirsten Gillibrand Pete Buttigieg Marianne Williamson
Rumored to be considering:
Joe Biden Beto O'Rourke Michael Bloomberg
That's 15 people total so far. Sweet night. We laughed when Repubs held 13 primary debates in 2011 for the 2012 Presidential election, but goodness.
Yep, let's get cracking on the 2019 primary debates for the 2020 election to whittle this field down. We have a lot of ground to cover; we need to weed through the serious contenders and make sure we have only about 5 people once the Primaries actually start in 2020.
Iowa then New Hampshire are always first and second, which is bullshit, as they are NOT representative of what the bulk of the country or the bulk of most states look like in terms of demographics. Only diff between the two: one is in New England, the other in Middle America. Nevada and South Carolina come next, which are better indicators of the populace. South Carolina is often seen as the "black vote" litmus test whereas Iowa and NH are seen as the white ones?
For most citizens, the Primary calendar is relatively boring until Super Tuesday unless you're a political junkie and nerd like me, but here's something major to note for Super Tuesday this time: California is now a Super Tuesday state, which will likely have major implications for the overall primaries and likely for Kamala Harris.
But enough about those details, let's address the title of this post.
Plainly put: I'm so over white male candidates for president. The latest white male in 1600 PA Ave is royally fucking things up for everyone who isn't a wealthy white male or married to one, so yeah, I do NOT want a white male at the top of the ticket for the 2020 Democratic general election. We need someone vastly and radically different at the top of the ticket.
So, for me, it's Melanin or Ovaries 2020. Yes, I said it. What?!
Yes, I have favorites in the race so far. I also have favorite policy ideas, which is mainly what I vote on. I also know some folks who've said or believed some shit that made me grimace, raise an eyebrow, or say "aw, hell naw!"
I'm not sure who I'm backing for the primaries yet; I have until March 2020 to decide (well, technically, a bit before that because Early Voting is a thing.) But I know this, 9 times outta 8, the person I vote for in the primaries will have melanin OR ovaries.
And fortunately, looks like I have plenty of folks to choose from.
Of the 9 confirmed candidates, 4 are women.
Of the 15 total, 6 are women.
Of the 9 confirmed so far, 5 of them would be considered people of color (and fuck no, I'm not counting Warren. Don't be silly.)
Of the 15 total, 6 could be considered POC. (If Buttigieg considers his 1/2 Maltese identity as being biracial or half POC. If not, then we're still at 5. I don't know Buttigieg yet, so I don't know.)
I'm sure people will say this is being anti-white or anti-male.
To that I say, nope, fuck you. I'm being pro-me--just like anyone else who votes. I'm a strong, proud woman of color, and I'd like a leader who looks like me in at least one of those regards--in both regards would be ideal. But I'm a realistic dreamer. I take the victories as they come, and work harder for the even better future victories.
We've had 44 presidents and 1 Russian-asset, impostor president. All have been male. All but one have been white. In reality, all but half of one have been white. We're one of the last developed nations in the world to have never had a woman elected as the head of state. That's ridiculous!
For those who know history, they'll recall that First Lady Edith Wilson was de facto president after Woodrow Wilson suffered an incapacitating stroke. And they'll also recall that we've had plenty of first ladies whose opinions were truly valued and sought by their presidential mates and whose ideas affected how the presidents governed during their tenure: Abigail Adams, Eleanor Roosevelt, Hillary Clinton, Michelle Obama to name just a few FLOTUSes who truly had the ear of their spouses.
But short of this, we have NOT had an actual woman president, and damnit, it's beyond time! There are several good women candidates to consider (and Gabbard, who my dad predicts won't make it past Iowa. I tend to concur.) It's beyond time for American citizens by and large to trust women to speak for ourselves, to trust people of color to speak for ourselves, and hear us and know and trust that we can speak from our own experiences AND understand and speak to the experiences of our white counterparts as well. For too long, we've trusted 43 white males and 1 biracial male to do this for us. (I will not count the Russian asset here.) Why is it men can be trusted to speak for and to everyone, but women are doubted? To that, I call bullshit.
And yes, Pres. Obama is a person of color, so yes, we've had one president who was a POC. Obama is the outlier, but that's not enough. So, we're supposed to be happy having had only one POC as president? Absofuckinglutely not! POC built this damn nation. From the Native Americans whose land was stolen to Africans brought here and forced to toil and till and grow and produce and raise the land and its white citizens to Chinese immigrants who built the rails to LatinX/Hispanic people whose land was also stolen and many other groups of POC. POC are the foundational roots of this country. We've earned our place to stand tall and proud and represent this nation on the world stage and lead this country towards a brighter tomorrow for ALL citizens. We are more than capable of doing so. The country must trust that.
More than anything, at a time when POC and women are more than capable of running things, telling our own stories, speaking for ourselves, and taking direct action to make things happen, a women or POC must be heard. We no longer need white males to speak for us or make room for us.
To quote the first black woman to run for president in the 1972 election (exactly 100 years after the first woman ran in 1872):
"If there's no seat at the table for you, bring a folding chair."
Pay attention.
Be informed
Take part.
And fucking vote.
Look up everyone who is running. Vote for who you believe in. Support and vocalize about them.
Comments
Post a Comment