Over the course of the race to find a Democratic Nominee for the 2008 presidential election, one thing has become incredibly clear: Barack Obama has had it far easier than Hillary Clinton––an advantage which has been extraordinarily unfair.

Throughout the race for the nomination, Obama has been the media darling, appearing on shows like The Today Show, being featured in countless magazines, and he has faced much less criticism from the media, as they feel that any critique of him would be considered racist.

Using that logic, wouldn’t that make any attack towards Clinton seem sexist? Apparently not, as the media drools at the prospect of getting to say something negative about the ex-First Lady, whether it be about her non-sugary nor ditzy personality to her “scandalous” clothing choices.

I think what we need to realize is that electing a woman would be equally momentous as electing an African-American for president of the United States. Though the United States generally prides itself for being a place of social equality and equal opportunity, not one of our past presidents has been anything other than a Caucasian male, whereas in other countries people of African descent and women hold office.

Whichever way the race for the Democratic Nomination goes, the 2008 presidential election is going to be monumental, mainly because of the groundbreaking Democratic candidate. No matter who you choose––Clinton or Obama––their candidacy is going to scream change, even if one of them isn’t promoting it as loudly in their campaign. So please, instead of calling for Clinton to back down, could we just realize that either way the United States is going to––hopefully––change with this election, and focus on the issues, rather than the candidate’s physical appearances.

Elizabeth Tiffany, staff writer