For far too long what is happening in South America is under the radar of the media. Only the odd provocative pronouncement of some political leader attracts an article in the press or an item on the TV news.
CommonDreams reproduces a piece from McClatchy Newspapers on the rise of women in South America - including the election of a woman as Chile's President last year and the almost certain imminent election of a woman as President of Argentina:
"Defying Latin America’s longtime reputation as a bastion of machismo, women in South America are winning political power at an unprecedented rate and taking top positions in higher education and even, albeit more slowly, in business.
The election last year of Michelle Bachelet to Chile’s presidency and the all-but-certain victory of Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner in Argentina’s presidential balloting next Sunday are the most visible examples of the trend.
South American women also are leading important social movements and are earning, studying and speaking out more than ever. For the first time, women are forcing their traditionally male-dominated societies to confront such issues as domestic violence and reproductive health.
“I think there’s been a general change,” said Elena Highton, who in 2004 became Argentina’s first female Supreme Court judge appointed by a democratically elected government. She promptly headed a commission on domestic violence.
“This is the time of the woman, and people want to try something new,” Highton said. “Women are seen as more believable, more honest, more direct. And in this world dominated by men, we’ve seen lots of failures.”
It’s a fundamental shift in a region long ruled almost exclusively by men, where the influence of women was relegated to the home or, in public life, to supporting roles for powerful spouses."
CommonDreams reproduces a piece from McClatchy Newspapers on the rise of women in South America - including the election of a woman as Chile's President last year and the almost certain imminent election of a woman as President of Argentina:
"Defying Latin America’s longtime reputation as a bastion of machismo, women in South America are winning political power at an unprecedented rate and taking top positions in higher education and even, albeit more slowly, in business.
The election last year of Michelle Bachelet to Chile’s presidency and the all-but-certain victory of Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner in Argentina’s presidential balloting next Sunday are the most visible examples of the trend.
South American women also are leading important social movements and are earning, studying and speaking out more than ever. For the first time, women are forcing their traditionally male-dominated societies to confront such issues as domestic violence and reproductive health.
“I think there’s been a general change,” said Elena Highton, who in 2004 became Argentina’s first female Supreme Court judge appointed by a democratically elected government. She promptly headed a commission on domestic violence.
“This is the time of the woman, and people want to try something new,” Highton said. “Women are seen as more believable, more honest, more direct. And in this world dominated by men, we’ve seen lots of failures.”
It’s a fundamental shift in a region long ruled almost exclusively by men, where the influence of women was relegated to the home or, in public life, to supporting roles for powerful spouses."
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