The Glass Ceiling in Canada
Yesterday, Hillary Clinton formally suspended her campaign and endorsed Barack Obama. As part of her speech she said that:
Although we weren't able to shatter that highest, hardest glass ceiling this time, thanks to you, it has about 18 million cracks in it and the light is shining through like never before.
(I'd personally argue the ceiling has 36 million cracks in it, since both her and Obama's candidacies are historic and the ultimate goal has yet to be reached.)
In any case, Cernig at the Newshoggers, in commenting on the above, noted the following:
(We Brits, of course, can feel a bit smug - the final glass ceiling for women there shattered a few decades ago. Pity it was done by someone who turned out to be one of the worst, most devisive leaders in recent British history...our Dubya, if you will.)
This got me wondering about the glass ceiling in Canadian politics. Kim Campbell doesn't really count; she wasn't elected to be Prime Minister but was instead handed the reins to a party about to be annihilated from the national scene.
While the NDP has had, and the Green party does have, female leadership, to become Prime Minister requires leading either the Liberals or the Conservatives. The last woman to be seriously considered for either, (in her case, actually both), leadership positions was Belinda Stronach. And if any Hillary supporters want to talk about sexism, take a long look at how Stronach was treated throughout her abbreviated political career. It makes the treatment Hillary received look very tame in comparison. From the "ditzy blond" stereotype, to being called several variations of "whore" when she changed parties, (and several Conservatives stuck with "whore" itself), to the myriad rumours surrounding her personal life, I can't think of another Canadian politician treated with such disrespect in recent memory.
Prior to her, the most prominent females who might be touted for leadership roles were Sheila Copps with the Liberals, and Deborah Grey on the Reform/Alliance side, but I'm very hard pressed to think of any at the present time.
Down in the states, some of Hillary's supporters have complained that she is the only possible female President for the foreseeable future, and that there aren't any other qualified women waiting in the wings. In truth, there are several prominent female governors in both parties along with Senators and Representatives that could move into that role over the next decade or so. But where are the prominent women on the Canadian political scene?
On the Conservative side, it's all Harper, all the time. The only female cabinet minister I recall making headlines was the ill-fated Rona Ambrose as Environment Minister for a government that doesn't think much of the environment, leaving her to be shuffled off to another post.
On the Liberal side? No better at present. The last leadership race featured a single woman, who was knocked off in the first ballot.
Premiers? All men.
So help me out here. Are there any woman out there that I'm overlooking and who is positioned to take a run at Canada's glass ceiling in the near future? And what does it say about us Canadians if there isn't?
