Kate Michelman, lifelong feminist and former head of NARAL, on why she's for Edwards

The ladies man: Kate Michelman, lifelong feminist and former head of NARAL, talks about why she's signed up to work for John Edwards
By Rebecca Traister--Salon.com
Monday, January 29, 2007
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With the Democratic presidential field full to bursting a year before the first primaries and caucuses, contenders have already gotten grabby over campaign staffs, consultants, celebrity spokespeople and fundraising powerhouses. Further gumming up the assembly of political machinery is the historic nature of campaigns by a female candidate, Hillary Clinton, and an African-American, Barack Obama. As a result, perhaps, primary teams are defying expectations and conventional wisdom.
One of the most unexpected alliances announced in these early days has been the hiring of leading women's rights advocate Kate Michelman by former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards. Michelman's new role, as a senior advisor to the Edwards campaign, has surprised many who might have assumed that the former head of NARAL Pro-Choice America would have automatically reported for duty at Camp Hillary, where women's history may be in the making.
Michelman spoke by phone to Salon about her decision to hitch her star to the Edwards campaign.
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And, clearly, he asked you very early on in the campaign.
Yes, very early on. So I think that says a lot about his seriousness and commitment to addressing the experiences of women in society. I think it speaks very well of him. And while I've been a leader on women's liberties and equality, I'm known mostly for my work on reproductive rights, which could make a candidate feel somewhat reluctant or questioning. But it didn't with John and Elizabeth.
I have often felt that in the past, campaigns have paid lip service to women, or treated them as a constituency. Well, excuse me. I hate to be treated as a constituency. We are people. We are a force, a vital centerpiece of society as a whole -- and in the past I have felt insulted that issues of concern to women have been given only lip service. But John is doing anything but that. Bringing someone like me on board is a real statement about that.

What made you choose to come aboard his campaign and not someone else's?
I chose John Edwards for a number of reasons. I got to know him when he was running for the Senate for the first time in North Carolina, and over the years I've been in the political world, he's one of the finest people I've ever known, in terms of his values, his views, and just as a person. So I start from being someone who admires him and considers him a good friend.
My choice to support him was made in full consideration of all the candidates. Each has real strengths, and frankly any of them would make us safer and prouder . It's a field of the best of the best, from Hillary to Barack to Richardson to Governor Vilsack. But, again, my personal view of John is that he stands for what he believes in -- he has never backed down or retreated from a woman's right to choose; he understands as a lawyer, as a senator, as the father of two daughters, and as a husband what the right to equality for women means, and he understands personally what the experience of women in society is.
His emphasis on poverty is also of particular interest to me because of two experiences in my life. My early entrance into social activism as a young person was first focused on economic inequality, then moved on to the civil rights movement, and then on to the women's rights movement. His emphasis on the injustice of economic disparity is very important to me, his work on poverty is with a full understanding of the particular impact poverty has on women and children. The second experience is that there was a period in my own life when I found it necessary to go on welfare, when I didn't have any resources, or healthcare, when I didn't know quite how I was going to feed my children as a single mother of three young girls. I had no job, no car, no nothing. It was a frightening time. And it put me right in the center of the experience of women who every single day of their lives don't know how they are going to take care of their families and don't know how to get out of it.
There are issues that have not been addressed as women have taken on more responsibilities. Society has not kept pace with the expanding roles of women. They are not only homemakers, but are working and contribute to the economic security of their families. They struggle to find quality affordable childcare, to work, to mother, to care for their own parents. It worries me that women think we've made all this progress and our journey is almost over. Well, it's not over. It's not over on many levels. And John understands that.
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Read the rest here.

My choice to support him was made in full consideration of all the candidates. Each has real strengths, and frankly any of them would make us safer and prouder . It's a field of the best of the best, from Hillary to Barack to Richardson to Governor Vilsack.

Very classy thing to do. In contrast, look at Biden's remarks today trying to list faults of his fellow Dems.

Julie

:hide:

Thanks for the article.

I started to post about NARAL backing Lieberman over Lamont, but then read that Kate Michelman is the Former Head of NARAL.

Because, to quote a late great American, "it's only your life that's at stake."