Call this a delayed reaction. I am writing about an interchange between our Senator in Massachusetts, Scott Brown, and Elizabeth Warren, who is challenging him for his seat. My comments are about an exchange that had to do with body image, if you ask me. (And I know you didn’t.)
A quick review of the he said, she said. During a recent debate, a question came to Senatorial candidates, including, Elizabeth Warren. “To help pay for his law school education, Scott Brown posed for Cosmo. How did you pay for your college education.” Elizabeth Warren quipped, “I kept my clothes on.”
Later, Scott Brown, when asked about her answer said, “Thank God!” These two comments occupied the press for days of commentary which included words from House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi, in defense of Warren, and various Republican colleagues in defense of Scott. In the midst of the hubbub, no one suggested that the question itself was inappropriate, the “posing” having happened in 1983. We, of course, do not know the shape of Elizabeth Warren’s physique at that point.
What occurs to me now is that the physique of political candidates seems irrelevant, or, should be. Is he handsome or she attractive? Surely we Americans who are so proud of our democracy can see beyond appearance to policy, integrity and leadership -or not!
I have no opinion about whether or not either of their remarks was sexist, though it seems clear that Scott Brown thinks his body is more attractive than Elizabeth Warren’s. Is this a beauty pageant? For me, its a wake up call. I better be sure to vote for a candidate based on what I consider good for the country. Sure, maybe we want someone to look at who is easy on the eye. But we have lived with leaders before whose job performance was more important than their appearance. Maybe TV has lured us into a beautiful people mentality. Its time to end that seduction and ask the Media for more substance. Addressing our own tendency to fall down the slippery slope of consumer shallowness would help too.