Women and Politics

This post was submitted by Jamie Bence, one of WCF’s Summer 2009 Fellows.

Yesterday, a few of the fellows attended an event hosted by Media Matters for America called Mainstreaming Extremism, where leaders from civil rights and watchdog groups spoke about the connection between incisive rhetoric and acts of domestic terrorism.  The event was held in DC’s National Press Building, near our WCF offices.  Points of discussion included Dr. Tiller’s tragic death and the recent shooting at DC’s Holocaust Museum.

The participants discussed how media extremists created a culture of acceptance for actions like Scott Roeder’s. The financial downturn, coupled with political uncertainty, has provided fodder for extremists.   The panelists drew a line between free speech and rhetoric which specifically targets individuals for acts of violence.

Nancy Keenan, President of NARAL Pro-Choice America, faulted Bill O’Reilly for using deniability, distraction and defiance to obscure his role in Tiller’s murder.  Watch O’Reilly’s comments on George Tiller here.

The discussion also focused heavily on the discourse surrounding immigration, and therefore, anti-Latino sentiment.  Clarissa Martinez, from National Council of La Raza, pointed out that these sentiments have poured over into controversy surrounding Sonya Sotomayor’s confirmation.

However, all of the panelists agreed that the best way to fight the hateful hysteria would be to use social networking and media to empower positive, pro-choice and pro-women support.  Media outlets will also continue to play a role, although hopefully with more revelatory reporting, like this piece from the Rachel Maddow Show or PBS’s reporting.  In the next few weeks, WCF will begin to feature our Sister Allied organizations on our homepage.  We will continue to connect with you on this blog, Facebook, Myspace, Twitter and Change.org.  Stay tuned.

Tags: fellows, media, sotomayor