A Female Commander in Chief? Far from Fiction

Last week there was a virtual coup in the realm of global women’s leadership. Chile elected its first female president, Michelle Bachelet. Liberia swore in its first female president, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, who incidentally is also the African continent’s first female president. Meanwhile, here at home in the United States, Geena Davis, America’s first female president on television won a Golden Globe for her role as President McKenzie Allen on ABC’s Commander in Chief.

Female heads of state are not a 21st century invention. For years, we have seen some women such as Margaret Thatcher in England, Indira Gandhi in India, Benazir Butto in Pakistan, and Angela Merkel in Germany, ascend through political dynasties, monarchies or the parliamentary system. These women have broken barriers and often been inspirational leaders, but they are among an extremely small and elite group. Only 11 of the 193 nations, including Liberia and Chile now, have a woman in the top position. The glaring omission from this list is the United States, indisputably the world’s leading democracy.

Read more: Feminist.com