Nairobi News

Once again, the world proved that they would rather an inexperienced and obnoxious man than a refined, brilliant and capable woman who has proven herself over and over again.

One more time, women — even in the world’s most progressive country — proved true the maxim that women are their own worst enemies.

Ninety-four per cent of black women and 68 per cent of Latino women voted US Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton as 53 per cent of white female voters chose Republican nominee Donald Trump, according to polls.

Once again, ladies and gentlemen, it was proved that women still have a long way to go in smashing the glass ceiling.

Once more, dear readers, it has been rubberstamped that women have to work twice as hard, to get half of what the men have.

I am bitter that Clinton lost. I am angry to see a woman I had come to admire lose an election to a loathsome, sexually depraved old man with a double digit number of women accusing him of sexual harassment.

STRONG WOMEN

I am livid that in this liberal and progressive society we live in, women still have to prove themselves and work harder than the men to get what men do easily.

I am angry that America did not give Mrs Clinton one little, fighting chance, a small window of opportunity to prove herself. That they would rather have a man with loose morals than a woman to lead them. Does that, dear Kenyans, sound familiar?

Now, let it be clear I am not one of those deluded, man-hating, single women who masquerade as feminists. And I am certainly not one of those wimpy, incompetent women who cry foul and play the woman card when they can’t deliver (I am talking results). I am just an angry city girl, with very healthy relationships with all the men in her life.

What happens in Vegas does not always stay in Vegas. Women the world over, including America, are going through what Clinton just went through. A society that just can’t give a woman a chance.

I have said this before here; the society we live in, hates strong women who stand their ground. If, in the year of our Lord 2016, the United States of America can choose a casino-owning billionaire who spoke so lewdly about women, over a woman who could easily do the job, what does that mean for young women in Africa like me, struggling to do something meaningful with our lives?

I will tell you what it means. It means that in 2017, we will have less than three female elected governors and senators. That young women like me, still have a very, very long and tiresome way to go before we can finally sit at the table.

WE NEED MORE

That panels will always be — as fellow journalist Christine Mungai brilliantly put it ‘manels’ (a panel made up of only men). That the boardrooms and the ‘dream-teams’ will still be filled with a bunch of men of the old boy’s network and perhaps one or two women, who I will boldly say in this column, use their positions to stifle younger women instead of lending a helping hand.

We want these tops jobs. And we are not being entitled. We are smart and brilliant and most importantly, capable. I don’t know about other women, but I think I’m right when I write that my parents didn’t raise me to be just an ordinary girl or be happy with being average.

The truth is, no matter how hard a woman works, how brilliant her ideas are, how well she does in school and how many degrees, years of experience and how talented she may be, she is still never good enough. You still doubt her.

I know women have made significant progress. The Germans and the Brits have women leading them. World Bank is being run by a woman. Liberia has a female president. When I look around in Kenya — in all professions except journalism — I’m encouraged to see more female chief executives and more women on boards. I’m also encouraged to see female Cabinet Secretaries and successful and powerful women like my favourite, Monicah Juma.

But we want more. We want to sit at the table, make decisions and we know that you know that we can. So what are you waiting for? I sure hope the bosses that really matter are reading this, and that my editor does not delete this sentence.

We. Need. More. Women. On top.

Meanwhile, congratulations, Mr Trump.