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RETRO RHETORIC

Petition Asks Obama to Stop Referring to Women as 'Our Wives and Mothers'

President is under fire for addressing his speech to men only

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by Mary Noble

Senior Editor t +

Image: AP

Women of Politix, did you watch Obama's State of the Union? Did it strike a false note when Obama referred to you? In case you've forgotten, here's what the president said: "We know our economy is stronger when our wives, mothers, and daughters can live their lives free from discrimination in the workplace and free from the fear of domestic violence."

It certainly struck a false note with the 1,500+ people who signed the White House petition asking Obama to "stop using the 'wives, mothers, & daughters' rhetorical frame that defines women by their relationships to other people."

As the petition alleges, the phrasing is a problem not just because defining women in relation to men is belittling. It's also because Obama seemed to be talking to men about "our" women - and not addressing women in his State of the Union at all.

Via Salon.
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Does it bother you that Obama referred to American women as "our wives, mothers, and daughters"?

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114 Comments (view in Forum)

  • _Jenny_
    !
    The petition is only fruitloops attempting to turn women against President Obama. It's not going to work. What I go by is the nearly 1100 Republican ant-women bills across the nation between only 2010 and 2013 attacking my (a woman) rights and freedoms. They even blocked fair pay laws and in one state repealed a equal pay law. And look at all the stupid statements Republican leaders have said. Not a few, but a bunch of things. One of my favorites is ..... “We've got real issues to talk about, not the latest bimbo eruption.” That was said in 2012 by Republican Jon Huntsman.
  • jessejaymes
    !
    You could ask the nation if every person should get a million free dollars tax free instead of building ten more nukes and 1,500 people would sign a petition against it. Much ado about nothing.
  • xyz
    !
    I'm a 60 yr old single female. Parentless & childless. I've worked in the same factory for 38 years and overpaid my taxes so that the government gets every nickle they think they're entitled to. I have one house, one car, one TV, one computer. I give to charity and take in the homeless and every stray cat. I guess Obummer thinks I'm useless.
    F**k Obama.

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  • mimi57
    !
    ...and sisters, aunts, grandmothers, female dogs...People are getting crazier by
    the minute. I wonder what the next 'petition' will be about. That should be interesting! How can any of this crap be taken seriously?!!
  • mimi57
    !
    @DerivePI Truly...I have had enough of these nuts wanting petitions and laws
    passed, and crying and whining because this is 'incorrect' or that is 'insensitive'.
    Don't you think we have enough 'real' problems. I mean Korea is trying their
    best to get missiles to destroy us and China may be aiding them, Bengahzi ,
    major unemployment and a deficit that's 16.5 trillion $, people are killing each
    other and police, etc., and these nuts are worried about Obama "referring to
    women as "wives"... where's the Tylenol?! LOL

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  • Dan_Tien
    !
    "We know our economy is stronger when our wives, mothers, and daughters can live their lives free from discrimination in the workplace and free from the fear of domestic violence." Besides referring to the female population as chattel, is the statement even true? Do we "know" that there are direct correlations between these topics, or did his speechwriter just string together three hot topics for maximum impact?
  • Knightkore
    !
    Ugh....Politix....you're going to make me feel dirty here but....I actually don't see anything wrong with what President Hussein Obama said....seems like the political correct over senstive progressive liberal agenda and police are at it again....interesting....isn't that what Ben Carson mentioned at the National Prayer Breakfast? Anyway, 1500 people....there were more people signing for Texas to secede....yawn....
  • DogLady_1
    !
    Maybe, he could also add, "Your fathers and husbands..." "Or he could just say, "Your female friends and loved ones..." Or maybe "Your friends, lovers, mistresses, cougars, spouses, and family members of all sexual/gender persuasions..." Or perhaps, "Those you care about regardless of sex, gender or sexual orientation, and those with whom you have no sexual or familial relations but consider to be an integral part of your support system and make you feel like you are wanted and important"... boy, this PC stuff is hard! Either way, some yahoo will think this is an impeachable offense...
  • Fishbone345
    !
    @Denizen_Kate It seemed to me that he was trying to portray how important women are to the success of the US and it in a way that dumb men could understand.
    He wasn't dumbing down to women, he was dumbing down for the gorilla side of the sexes.
    I can be pretty selfish sometimes, it's good for me to think about my sister, mother and grandmother.
  • wonka45ACP
    !
    I have the best ideal, to help all the political correctness Mongers of this country.
    let's Rewrite Webster's, let's redefine our History, let's Apologize to all we offended.
    Shed a few tears, then have a stiff drink and call it a night...
  • Hireman
    !
    Really? People are worried by this? And when he refers to soldiers, should he not call them "sons, husbands, fathers", etc.? Give me a break
  • WMCOL
    !
    Hadn't noticed this, but think the Prez is probably busted.

    However, ultimately, just about everything is defined by something else.

    It's up becaue it is not down. Dark because it is not light. Woman because it is not a man. Man because it is not a woman. If Prez says woman he is defining woman by woman not being a man or by woman's relationship to man which is opposite, and vice versa for defining man.

    Love is defined by its relationship to hate. One is not known without the other. Pain and pleasure. Never to know one is to not know the other.

    So the whole attack on President is likely much ado about nothing, and I know nothing because of knowing something, and know much because or relationship to knowing less.
  • Tralee
    !
    Just a hunch, but it seems that someone has waaaaayyyyyy too much time on their hands. Most women are either a wife or a mother, or had a mother or want to be a wife and mother or some combination of the two, what does this idiot want him to call them?
  • Realthinker
    !
    Domestic abuse is NOT tied to economics. Domestic abuse is the result of a jerk who never grew up and learned to control his emotions. He could be a millionaire as easily as an auto worker. Been there.
  • Keyjo
    !
    @mimi57
    You know what I mean. I am not talking exclusively about physical or domestic abuse. Paying women less for equal or even superior work, failure to promote because of gender, these ate abuse too.
  • mimi57
    !
    @AceLuby I believe in many states they are...Here,'abuse' is abuse, and whether I hit my husband/ wife , boy friend or girl friend, who ever did the hitting
    or whatever, is going to jail.
  • AceLuby
    !
    @mimi57 Assault charges are different than domestic violence charges. Only Hawaii has explicit LGBT domestic violence laws and only 3 other states have consistently upheld state domestic violence laws to gay couples that are married.

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  • PNWest
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    The right wing is really scraping the bottom of the barrel on this one. They must be running out of things to be outraged about. Even Neo can't be sad about this. Since when is referring to females as our wive, mothers, daughters disrespectful?
  • crusader
    !
    I don't think this si from the right wing. I think this is from the few who think Obama is not liberal enough. It was those that criticized the use of drones and acted outraged when he made the joke about using them on boys too interested in his two daughters.
  • PNWest
    !
    @crusader Right or left I think that there are far more pressing issues facing the country that something from this. If it came from someone on the left I am ashamed of them.
  • crusader
    !
    @PNWest I agree, but this should be a nonissue but special interest groups make big deals out of nothing to bring attention to themselves and their cause. I guess even negative attention is still good for them.
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