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Tribuna Norteamericana / nº15, abril 2014 Women’s Progress on the Road to Congress / Alana Moceri Alana WOMEN’S PROGRESS An American political writer, lecturer Moceri and activist based in Madrid, Spain. Alana is a ON THE ROAD lecturer of political communication and public diplomacy at the Universidad Europea de TO CONGRESS: Madrid. A Comparative Look at Spain and the U.S. In 2004, Alana she founded the Madrid chapter of Democrats Abroad Spain In addition to blogging and became country chair in 2006, leading the for the U.S. and group until 2009. She directed Americans Spanish editions of Abroad for Boxer for Senator Barbara Boxer's The Huffington Post , 2010 reelection campaign, directing. In 2011, Alana has written for Alana Moceri she worked for the Spanish think tank, the various Spanish Fundación IEAS as an international media publications including consultant. She has appeared in numerous daily El País , FP en Español and the interviews and debates on Spanish television magazine Campaigns & and radio. Elections en Español. ver the years as I have appeared in the I receive countless invitations to O Spanish media, first as the President of political roundtables and conferences and over Democrats Abroad, and later as a political and over, I've vowed to not attend anything that analyst, I am typically the lone woman in a sea doesn't include at least one female protagonist. of grey-haired men. Sure, often the presenters are But if I stuck to this vow, I'd miss many events, women—pretty women, clad in tiny dresses— including the all-important networking but I am most often the only woman battling for opportunities. I'm scandalized every time I walk the rhetorical upper hand. One of these men was by a news-stand only to be confronted with outraged that I challenged his assertion that naked breasts staring at me. I blush in shame as everything was perfectly under control and safe I cross the Gran Via to Calle Montera and see at the Fukushima nuclear plant the day after the prostitutes out in plain view, musing that as long earthquake and devastating tsunami in 2011. He as there are prostitutes out there, we women are followed me out of the studio, down the hall and all prostitutes. It's easy to blame it all on into the TV station's lobby, yelling that I was “Spanish machismo.” wrong and had no idea what I was talking about. Ex-pats tend to blame whichever At the time (and more than once since country we happen to be living in for any >> Twitter: @alanamoceri then) I have wondered if he would have been as perceived ill. This is a great mistake because it outraged had I not been a woman. Would I be keeps us from recognizing that sexism and more respected as a political analyst if I had the gender inequality is a worldwide phenomenon. look of a wise, white-haired and bearded man? Women aren't a minority, we are a gender that This is a question that's easy to answer cynically cuts across every country, race, culture and socio- but impossible to answer empirically. It's economic level. We are part of it all everywhere tempting for American women like me living in but included and excluded in differing degrees. Spain to conclude that it's a sexist country based Like all social movements, women's pursuit of on anecdotal evidence. equality depends on collective action and 1 1 “World Classification”. Women in National Parliament. Website. 1st December 2013. 2 Tribuna Norteamericana / nº15, abril 2014 Women’s Progress on the Road to Congress / Alana Moceri % WOMEN IN U.S. CONGRESS AND CONGRESS DEPUTIES This chart is remarkable considering US SPAIN that women were effectively put in a holding Total% Total% pattern during the 36-year reign of General th American women 113 2013-2015 18.50% X 2011-2015 36.00% Francisco Franco. Despite achieving the vote in th 112 2011-2013 16.82% the 1931 constitution of the 2nd Republic, it all th 111 2009-2011 16.82% IX 2008-2011 36.29% went away in 1939: women couldn't open a bank have had their th 110 2007-2009 16.45% account, apply for passports or sign contracts th 109 2005-2007 15.33% VIII 2004-2008 36.00% without their husbands' permission. own uphill battle th 108 2003-2007 13.83% th American women have had their own 107 2001-2003 13.64% VII 2000-2004 28.29% th uphill battle for equality, but have had the right for equality, but 106 1999-2001 12.15% th to vote without interruption since 1920. There 105 1997-1999 11.78% VI 1996-2000 22.00% th were the cultural and political gains of the 1960s 104 1995-1997 10.65% have had the right th 103 1993-1995 10.09% V 1993-1996 15.71% and 70s, because by that time, women had th 102 1991-1993 5.98% already entered the workplace and were fighting th to vote without 101 1989-1991 5.79% IV 1989-1993 12.86% for equal rights there. This was the revolutionary th 100 1987-1989 4.67% III 1986-1989 6.29% time of the pill, the sexual revolution, the th 99 1985-1987 4.67% legalization of abortion and the raising of interruption th 98 1983-1985 4.49% II 1982-1986 4.57% consciousnesses. But despite these advances th 97 1981-1983 4.30% several decades ago, American women hold a since 1920 th 96 1979-1981 3.24% I 1979-1982 6.10% mere 18.5% of the seats on Congress. th 95 1977-1979 3.74% 1977-1979 5.80% This is a story about women and Sources: Instituto de la Mujer 2, INE 3, Center for American Women and Politics, Rutgers politics in two very different countries. The U.S. University 4 and The U.S. House of Representatives. 5 and Spain are both democracies, but with distinct It might surprise you systems of government and subsequent electoral because we make up roughly half the world, the to be proportionally represented in our and party organizations. This is also a story about that 36% of Spain's potential power that women have through this governments is not only highly symbolic but divergent approaches towards equality from is immense. critical towards creating a more equal ecosystem within the left and right political parties, the members of We must look to our sisters abroad not in all other facets of public life. concept of quotas and support from outside Parliament are only for support but to share best practices in It might surprise you that 36% of organizations. Finally, this is a story about people: strategy and tactics in this ongoing quest. Spain's members of Parliament are women, women who have and continue to fight for equal women, placing Consequently, this essay takes a comparative placing it 20th in the world by the Inter- representation and enlightened men who look at the representation of women in Spain's parliamentary Union 1 while American women recognize the value of gender parity in their it 20th in Congress of Deputies and the United States make up just 18.5% of the U.S. Congress for a parties and governments rather than seeing Congress. dismal ranking of 79th. women as inferiors or simply more competition. the world by the Yes, Spain, the country where the term Women's Entry into Inter-parliamentary “machismo” comes from (which has long been The Playing Field 1 Politics adopted into the English lexicon). But if that last Union while figure didn't surprise you, this one just might do 2 t it's core, democracy means ruled by the trick: in 1977, the first elected Parliament of American women the people and therefore democracies Spain after 36 years of dictatorship had slightly mericans love to talk about a “level A more women (5.8%) than the U.S. Congress at have a moral obligation to inclusiveness and A playing field.” The idea being that an make up just 18.5% diversity in their structures of power so that the the time (3.74%) and from there it has equal starting point ensures that all have an equal people can truly rule. Of all the advances that comfortably outpaced women in the U.S. for chance of success. Unfortunately, this very nice of the U.S. Congress women have and continue to fight for, the battle the past 39 years. sentiment is in reality elusive. We may not ever get to an entirely level playing field in terms of for a dismal 2 “Estadísticas. Poder y toma de decisiones”. Instituto de la mujer. Website. Last Access: 2013/11/08 gender but we can take a brief look at what 3 ranking of 79th “Mujeres en el Congreso de los Diputados y en el Senado”. Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE). Website. Last history books largely leave to the more specialized Access: 2013/11/08. 4 The Center for American Women and Politics, Rutgers University. Website. Last Access: 2013/11/08. “women's history” books and courses. 3 5 Office of the Clerk. U.S. House of Representatives. Website. Last Access: 2013/11/08. 4 Tribuna Norteamericana / nº15, abril 2014 Women’s Progress on the Road to Congress / Alana Moceri America's first female Clara Campoamor congress-member, Jeannette Rankin of Montana was and Victoria Kent elected in 1916. It took were key players in nearly 70 years of fighting this struggle and also to win the right to vote, served in the beginning with the Seneca Parliament of Falls Convention, held July Spain's Second 19-20, 1848 in Seneca Republic Falls, New York through a mandate from their district but were Both in Spain and the U.S., women's placed on a list by party leadership.