A Note On Hillary Clinton’s Speech
August 27, 2008 by Kristina Chew, PhD
Filed under Health
Just after the introductory section of her speech at the Democratic Convention (transcript), as her first example of her “35 years in the trenches, advocating for children, campaigning for universal health care, helping parents balance work and family, and fighting for women’s rights here at home and around the world,” Hillary Clinton said:
I will always remember the single mom who had adopted two kids with autism. She didn’t have any health insurance, and she discovered she had cancer. But she greeted me with her bald head, painted with my name on it, and asked me to fight for health care for her and her children.
Comments Wonkette who liveblogged the Senator’s speech:
A single mom, two kids, autism, cancer, painted bald head…This is the most tragic woman in America, and Hillary Clinton found her.
Single mom (with cancer), two adopted kids (with autism): Not easy. But not so sure about rushing to judge this woman as “tragic.” Has referring to the parent of an autistic child become a shorthand way to show a certain, perhaps, compassion for those in need?
I would defer to however this unnamed (?) woman would like to refer to herself in the first-person, and my sincere hope is that it is not such that it feels to her as tragic or that she has some respite or solace if those are her feelings. Moreover I hope that consideration of such a gesture to Ms. Clinton can have some meaningful practical result beyond a tear-inducing Hallmark moment at a political convention, but I think that the situation of
Single mom
Two kids with autism
Cancer (and apparently going through chemotherapy)
AND no health insurance,
might qualify as being something well above and beyond, “Not easy”.
I don’t know who she is but my prayers to her for remission and to that family.
It’s the simply too much, and noticeably noted to highlight some prominent issues.
I agree Kristina, and I base my thoughts on how people react to me even in my great life with my son. They are often so sympathetic (thanks I guess) with a flurry of oh, things will never change attiude when asking me questions. I am guessing that the general population has a much more “tragic” outlook on Autism than we the parents do.
Yes, I think it was too much too, but so many of these speeches do have anecdotes in them that one has to question, I think. Not fingerpointing, just my opinion.
Of course she’s a politicians—-I was struck by the mention of autism. I don’t think it might have been mentioned so prominently in a previous generation.
“sympathetic (thanks I guess) with a flurry of oh, things will never change attiude “—thanks for that, Bonnie, that’s something that I often encounter too.
I think she could have mentioned two children with any special needs and the tear jerker moment would have been the same (as ridiculous as I personally believe the entire statement was). I think the use of “autism” was because it’s the one disorder that is everywhere right now (in the media/public view), feared and misunderstood and easy to use as a clencher, something to fear or tremble underneath the weight of the burden (of autism times two).
Autism is also the issue Obama doesn’t give specifics about how he’s going to deal with services, etc. She was getting in a dig, because she had a specific plan.
As for Wonkette, consider the source.
“Has referring to the parent of an autistic child become a shorthand way to show a certain, perhaps, compassion for those in need?”
I think that is a stretch. I am no Hillary fan, but the point was the lady had cancer, adopted two kids with autism, and had no health insurance. That’s a struggle, no two ways about it. I can also see why that one might stick in her mind since the lady had Hillary’s name painted on her bald head.
Hillary is not the only one to use the personal stories in speeches, all of them do it going back to Regan and perfected by Bill.
So, now Obama and the DNC want to hold the roll call away from the main hall, and stop the vote partially through … just in case Hillary does well, which might embarrass Obama and the DNC. This is what happens when a candidate and a party manipulate the process, and try to force a candidate down the throats of the constituents. Obama might have trashed the Clintons, and gotten over 90% of the black vote, but in the process America has been thrown under the bus.
P.S. After watching Hillary’s speech, it became obvious that she should be the democratic candidate. Many democrats must be feeling buyer’s remorse towards Obama now.
No buyer’s remorse here.
Hilary is still a eugenicist.
She still waltzed in with a sense of entitlement to a 3rd term in the white house.
But thanks for the projection =)
(and yes, i had the “wow, this has got to be an allegory” reaction to the single mom with autistic kids and cancer thing. no. way. Can single people even adopt? In a lot of states it’s MANY hoops, and usually those kids get medicaid.).
I went back and read the transcript. When Hillary first mentions this mom and her children, and identifies them as having autism, it’s immediately preceded by her talking about her admiration for all the people she met while campaigning. She says that “America’s greatness is bound up in the lives of the American people, your hard work, your devotion to duty, your love for your children, and your determination to keep going, often in the face of enormous obstacles.”
If Wonkette heard “tragic” in that, that says something about her preconcieved notions. Because I heard words of tribute.
Later, Hilliary mentions this family again. It’s when she is asking her most ardent supporters, ‘were you in this for me, or for the people in this country who need our help?’ Then she just mentions ‘the mom who has cancer and her two kids,’ and leaves the autism out. It’s pretty clear that it’s the cancer without health insurance that’s seen as the crisis here, not the autism.
Here in Ohio, I know two single women who adopted. One was a gym teacher who adopted two special needs kids, so yes, in at least one state it’s possible. I believe the kids all get Medicaid, though the moms are on their own with whatever insurance they get through their jobs.
Wondering if autism will still be such a concern in the next election; hoping that disability will, and it’s more than a health care issue.
Earlier post on Obama and Clinton, Autism and Disability.
Regarding the semantics of a “single mom”. Could she have once been “not single”.
I watched Hilary’s speech. It certainly got my attention when she mentioned autism. However, two painful points hit me with intensity.
I know several parents who have children with autism, they are also living or dying with cancer. Is it irony, co-incidence, or a message to all of us to listen to our own bodies while raising our children.
Additionally, Ms. Clinton’s reference to autism is not new. She has walked with many of us for Autism Speaks, joined by Republican Congressman Chris Shays. Autism has no political affiliation…and that’s the truth!
Autism Speaks, yeah that’s a way to get the autistic vote
LISTENING to autistics apparently has no political affiliation either. Well, Obama managed to get past my whole Uncanny Valley thing, but the rest don’t even bother trying. Shows how much they ACTUALLY care about that mom and her 2 kids, eh?
At least, no vaccine and epidemic talk.
As for the tragic comment, I would agree that it was the conglomeration of ALL the different aspects of the situation, and not the simple fact of having two autistic kids, that Hillary was calling tragic.
And as for autism becoming an issue in this election? I think it might, for good or ill. I seem to recall hearing Biden slip autism into his speech last night.
And for Bill Clinton too (via KRDO):
” I will never forget the parents of children with autism and other severe conditions who told me on the campaign trail that they couldn’t afford health care and couldn’t qualify their kids for Medicaid unless they quit work or got a divorce.”
The woman is dead.
I’d say that’s pretty tragic.
Just tragic.
As I know this posting come’s late, I just wanted to mention that the woman that Hillary Clinton spoke of is certainly not alone. I am the co-founder of a non-profit in Arizona called Singleton Moms. We provide practical support to single moms with cancer and we have assisted multiple women with autistic children. There are many of them in this country. It is a difficult situation but I have seen how strong these women can be.