For a few decades now, the feminist movement has claimed women deserve equality in the workplace. But not because women are women, because they’re just as talented and hardworking, if not more so, than men.
So when the city of St. Paul, Minnesota, elected its first-ever all-female city council on Thursday, why was it such a big deal?
Answer: Because every member is a woman, and nearly all of those members have diverse ethnicities. Much of the media, eager to replicate feminist talking points, praised this event for being historic, one of a kind. “St. Paul Makes History With All-Female City Council, a Rarity Among Large US Cities.” U.S. News & World Report claimed. “All-Female City Council Marks a Turning Point for a ‘Twin City,’” the New York Times remarked. CBS Evening News posted on X, formerly Twitter, “St. Paul, Minnesota, witnessed a historic moment when it welcomed its new city council composed entirely of women. Among the seven council members, six are women of color and all are under the age of 40.”
Of the newly elected members, one, Saura Jost, is a civil engineer. Another, Hwa Jeong Kim, is a nonprofit group executive director. Councilwoman Rebecca Noecker, in her third term, is a Harvard graduate. In other words, these women boast some accomplishments. Except that those credentials are not mentioned anywhere! The only thing that’s mentioned in the news headlines is their ethnicity and sex.
Here’s another thing these women have in common. Every new member has the words “community organizer,” “community leader,” or “organizer” in their bio. These sound like vague buzzwords liberals use to indicate involvement in something so benign it doesn’t have a label. As if being a civil engineer isn’t impressive enough to help one earn a seat on a city council! Perhaps, when compared to available men for city council, being a civil engineer would not have been enough, and that’s why Jost’s gender and ethnicity matter to the people of St. Paul. Time will tell.
One more thing that’s not mentioned, but clearly obvious, is that all, or most of the council, are politically liberal. Cheniqua Johnson, one of the newly elected councilmembers, was an “outreach and inclusion officer” for Minnesota’s Democratic party, the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party. St. Paul is a liberal city and electing Democrats is to be expected. Still, the question should be asked: How can the city council represent men or white men, or the handful of conservatives who live there, or at least advocate their views, if everyone on the city council is a female Democrat?
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The lesson: Diversity is only important when it goes in one direction ideologically.
The newly elected St. Paul city council is a perfect example of what happens when women push other women to break glass ceilings just because of their sex. But when they do arrive at a point of success, the only thing they’re lauded for is their sex, not their achievements. The feminist movement can’t decide: Do we want to be praised for being women? Or do we want to be successful for being smart, talented, and hardworking? The diverse city council is also a good exhibition of just how an emphasis on diversity still fails — an all-female, liberal city council doesn’t exactly represent the diversity of ideology or sex, either.
Nicole Russell (@russell_nm) is a contributor to the Washington Examiner’s Beltway Confidential blog. She is a mother of four and an opinion columnist for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in Texas