Like many in our country, the political events of the past few weeks have left me stunned and cautious. I feel as if I’m in the middle of a dystopian novel, wondering what unanticipated turn will happen next.
In the most recent plot twist, the citizens of the United States have learned the 2024 presidential election will not simply be a repeat of the 2020 election. The dismal energy surrounding our Nov. 4 choices has been buoyed by President Biden’s decision not to seek reelection.
On the heels of that decision came his immediate endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris, with the Democratic delegates quickly following suit to make her the Democratic Party’s assured nominee for the presidency.
Andrea Huffman
In my circles, this has caused a shift in energy that is almost palpable. Not only do we have a fresh candidate, but she is a woman. So many of my friends are touting the value of women in leadership and the hope that a woman in the office of the presidency could bring powerful change for women (and others) in our country. Women bring perspectives often overlooked by men, and we even practice leadership styles men don’t usually employ. Our lived experiences in a patriarchal society provide insights that men — even supportive men — simply cannot understand intrinsically, and this makes us valuable at any decision-making table.
Nevertheless, I find myself pushing back on some of this wide-eyed gender-based enthusiasm. I am personally excited and hopeful that Kamala is a candidate; I believe Kamala, on her own merits, will do the job well.
But I am not excited and hopeful simply because she is a woman. In fact, I harbor well-founded skepticism that the loudest (and most unstable) voices in our country will not take well to her leadership.
“We all should have expected a rise in backlash, the journalist asserted, because with progress comes those who fight against it.”
Perhaps this stems from an article I read back in 2018. In it, a political journalist claimed the mass support for Donald Trump in 2016 was a direct result of the political “progress” that came from Barack Obama’s presidency. We all should have expected a rise in backlash, the journalist asserted, because with progress comes those who fight against it. As long as the status quo is maintained, those who love and benefit from the status quo have no reason to rise up. As soon as that status quo is challenged, those who feel threatened by the newness are going to do what they can to return everything to stasis.
Family Systems Theory, anyone?
So even though I think it would be wonderful to have a female president, I cannot honestly claim unabridged excitement for it. I anticipate it will bring to the fore all those who harbor the patriarchal value system — even those silent sleepers who’ve never needed to fight the status quo because it’s always been in their favor. Once the highest office in our nation is held by a woman, though, I imagine they’ll come out of the woodwork.
As a female pastor, I’ve experienced both the subtle and not-so-subtle jabs that come when the patriarchal system gets bucked. I’m an award-winning preacher, but I was told by a man he can’t listen to me when I preach because it sounds like his angry mother is yelling at him.
I once was told I was unqualified to lead because I didn’t yet have children, and later (after children) told I shouldn’t be a pastor because motherhood should be my first ministry. When I told my good Baptist grandparents I felt called to be a pastor, my grandfather broke into a huge smile while my grandmother slowly shook her head. “That’s not a woman’s role,” she said to me. “We are not called to lead.”
“I was told by a man he can’t listen to me when I preach because it sounds like his angry mother is yelling at him.”
So perhaps my lack of gender enthusiasm stems from these experiences. Perhaps it speaks to my skepticism, knowing progress always brings backlash. Perhaps I just wish we lived in a world where Kamala and every other female leader wouldn’t have to put up with this anymore — but I know we don’t.
There’s a meme going around the socials these days that says: “When you say ignorant things about women in power, they don’t hear you. But your daughters hear you. Your mother hears you. Your sisters and your nieces hear you too.”
I’ve heard the ignorant things said about women in power. Other women have heard it too. So I just have to wonder: Will Kamala’s presidency be the mighty leap forward every female leader is hoping for, simply because she is a woman, or will her time as a leader fall prey to the same nonsense women in leadership — especially church leadership — experience on the daily?
When Kamala offers a speech that feels subpar, or when she looks a little tired, will we acknowledge the job of the presidency is difficult or will we decide women clearly can’t handle this amount of significant leadership?
When Kamala makes a decision we aren’t happy with, will we consider her reasoning and offer a thoughtful rebuttal or will we simply blame her gender?
When Kamala makes a mistake, as many presidents have done in the past, will we investigate it and give her humanity the benefit of the doubt or will we chalk it up to hormonal fluctuations? This, by the way, is the first reason I ever heard for why a woman shouldn’t be president. I was a fifth grader. “Can’t go dropping bombs on another country just because it’s her time of the month.”
Don’t get me wrong — the progress at having Kamala Harris as a candidate, and the progress that will come if she is elected president, is absolutely worth it. The fight against patriarchy is a worthy one, and I will continue fighting it, including but not limited to offering her my support and my vote.
But I find myself walking toward this next election not with wide-eyed enthusiasm for a female president but more with a determined grit that we need change, and Kamala is the one to bring it.
In her recent keynote address to Zeta Phi Beta women, she said: “We face a choice between two different visions of our nation. One focused on the future, the other focused on the past. With your support, I am fighting for our nation’s future.” Then she added: “So let us continue to fight, because when we fight, we win.”
I believe this, but it’s not going to be easy. It’s not going to be pretty. The ensuing decade may very well bring with it backlash from the progress made if Kamala wins the election.
“We still need to continue to fight,” as Kamala said, and I agree. But I’m not walking to November waving my female flag with bright eyes and an eager smile. Instead, I am girding my loins.
Andrea Huffman currently serves as Senior Pastor of Dayspring Baptist Church in St. Louis. She has served in ministry for the last 12 years, during which time she also birthed three children, earned two graduate degrees and bought a partridge for her pear tree. She currently resides in Liberty with her husband and their delightful handful of kids.
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