Women In Power

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Victoria Woodhull, in 1838, and Marietta Lizzie Bell Stow, in 1884, whereas the first American female candidates to run for a presidential and vice presidential seats in the United States. Neither of these women was elected into office, but they were the beginning of women anchoring themselves into political power. Over the next century women have continued to achieve power in America, but have not yet seen a position in a major political office. Even in today’s modern era Hillary Clinton did not make the final ballot. Ironically, around the world, Tzipi Livni may become the second female prime minister of Israel. At the pinnacle of power in her country, although it is not official yet, she would be the first female in many years to hold such power. In the early 1970’s, Golda Meir (the first female prime minister of Israel and the third in the world) already achieved more diplomatic power than any other female in the United States. What is even more astonishing is Israel is not the only Middle Eastern country to have a woman in political office. Benazir Bhutto reigned as prime minister in Pakistan twice in 1988 and 1993. The question remains why would the Middle East, who is stereotyped as oppressing women, have more women in political power than America?



For more information on Tzipi Livni campaign:

Or
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2008/09/2008922165515551230.html

For more information about Women in Leadership please visit:
http://www.guide2womenleaders.com/Candidates_Vice1880.htm

Dying for a Cause or Dying for an Identity?:

Suicide bombing is a topic rarely discussed in Western cultures, but throughout the last several years it has become an ever-growing trend in the Middle East. Women have always been involved in the political violence, but rarely has the world seen women in a lead role by becoming a suicide bomber. In the Middle East where women’s roles are commonly placed with being the wife and mother, some women never achieve such status. This may become one motive for deciding to use their bodies as a weapon of destruction and terror.

Women who lose or never gain their identity of motherhood or wife may go through certain stages of grief when deciding to enter the world of suicide bombing. The work of Elizabeth Kuebler-Ross, a psychologist who studied stages of grief, can explain reactions to a loss of identity. One emotion is depression, which may not be the sole, but is a contributive factor in some female suicide bombing cases. Kuebler-Ross states, “In this deep depression, they see only a horrible end with nothing beyond it”. To feel so hopeless and empty all the time is unbearable, in a country of Israel, where suicide bombing is glorified.

A video clip of Wafa Samir Al-Biss:


For example 21 year old Wafa Samir Al-Biss was scarred from an explosion six months before she was caught on an attempted suicide mission. The scars were so bad on her face that she wasn’t likely to attract a suitable husband. Wafa’s disfigurement left her a target to be approached by the Fatah al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade terrorist group. For Wafa she had lost her identity. Depression is an emotion that Western cultures treat with pills and therapy, while across the world these women are preyed on by their countries to help fight their nation’s struggles against Israel.

These are some alternative links if you would like to know more:

Elizabeth Kuebler-Ross’ Stages of grief
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stages_of_grief

Wafa Samir Al-Biss news story
http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Terrorism-+Obstacle+to+Peace/Terrorism+and+Islamic+Fundamentalism-/Attack+by+female+suicide+bomber+thwarted+at+Erez+crossing+20-Jun-2005.htm

Female Suicide Bombers Police Study
http://www.police-studies.com/papers/suicide.pdf