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| “I still don’t do my hair or wear makeup,” said Rep. Teresa Tanzi. Above, Tanzi shares a Memorial Day moment with her daughter, Delia. (Photo credit Tracey C. O’Neill 2013) |
On October 16th,
Rhode Island College (RIC) took an alternate path and
hosted a discussion panel featuring local women politicians as part of its Congress to Campus program.
The panel
members were State Senate President M.
Teresa Paiva Weed (D-13),General Treasurer Gina
Raimondo, State Representative Teresa Tanzi (D-34),
and Catherine Taylor who is the Director of the Rhode Island Division of
Elderly Affairs. They were joined by guest Ann Marie Buerkle, a former United
States Representative (R-NY).
Moderated by NBC 10′s Alison Bologna, the panel facilitated discussion about women’s roles in politics, double standards, and the need for more diversity across state and federal government.
One of the first
questions for the panel was whether or not gender played a role in helping them
get their jobs done. While Raimondo stated that she believed traditional
women’s issues, like childcare, are actually society wide issues, she owed the
women who were in her position before her a lot, and wanted to help create
opportunities for more women in Rhode Island.
“Throughout my
career in business and now politics I’m always trying to help other women,” she
said.
Tanzi agreed,
stating that the need for a more diverse political field is great.
“We need as many
perspectives as possible up there. We need people who are struggling different
types of struggles. It doesn’t matter the party, we really need all
perspectives.”
Another
important point that they made for students was that nobody asked them to run
for office. Their positions all came from self-motivation.
“You can’t wait
for someone to ask you,” said Paiva Weed. “As soon as you hear somebody’s not
running and you’re interested, you have to speak up.”
Buerkle told
students to remain confident in themselves, and to go with their gut.
“Don’t let
anyone ever tell you that you can’t do it. You have to be committed to that
fire in your belly.”
There is,
however, a huge double standard against women, as Weed displayed with her
anecdote about President Bill Clinton.
“Women are
judged much more quickly. Bill Clinton could cry and people thought that was
great. I will tell you this – if you are a woman in politics, do not ever let
anyone see you cry. You need to be tough. Bill Clinton could cry and people
thought that was moving, but they won’t if you’re a woman.”
Even though
these women feel the need to be tough, they believe being genuine is the most
important part of politics.
“I wear heels
now so I can look men in the eye, but that’s it. I still don’t do my hair or
wear makeup, and I put my emotions out there. Just do what you feel comfortable
doing,” was Tanzi’s final remark.
Raimondo, a
likely gubernatorial candidate, later spoke of the need to encourage the
younger generation to pursue public service.
“It was an honor
to be selected to speak among such accomplished women leaders at the RIC
Congress to Campus event,” said Raimondo. “It’s important for public servants
to share their experiences with the younger generation and overall campus
community in order to enhance the dialogue and encourage more women to run for
office in the future.”
The Congress to
Campus event was a two-day forum held as part of Rhode Island College’s
American Democracy Project.
