I know I’m all about systemic problems lately, but I had a meeting this afternoon in which I had a conversation that just blew my mind. I guess I don’t feel like going into detail about it except to say that it’s time, probably past time, for female Democrats to ask, at every level, “Where are the women?” And, yes, it will make us giant bitches and it will make people uncomfortable and yes, we’re going to have to hear that women just aren’t interested or aren’t suited or aren’t whatever.
And we’re still going to have to ask “where are the women?” anyway.
We have to start making the absence of women running for office and being in leadership positions uncomfortable and embarrassing.
Tiny Cat Pants 
I really want to hear more about this conversation.
Well, the gist that blew my mind is that I had not put two and two together about how the trends we see at the state level–very little support for female Democratic politicians, dismissal of how those state level female politicians’ concerns are dismissed as “women’s issues,” and how hard it is for them to find support among their male colleagues–have dire effects on getting Democratic women involved locally. Women organize and run PTAs and community groups, but talking us into running for school board or city council is very difficult, because you pretty much have to run as a Dem to win (because of the heavily Democratic leaning of our city), and the Dems are systemically terrible about and towards women and we know it.
Now, I, obviously, don’t want Davidson county to be less Democratic, but I do strongly believe we need women to participate in numbers more equal to our actual percentage of the population, which means we have to start making it very uncomfortable for Dems to keep shutting women out.
It also means that you’ll have to find new back rooms to fund your candidates, as the ones in existence are very obviously about male cronyism and priveledge.
Maybe the Democrat males treat all females the way they treat Republican females. In which case the Democrat women are not very likely to try, nor to succeed, in gaining elective office.