Home » » Women's Issues » America's First Lady

America's First Lady

© Nancy Coulter

I just got through watching the President's State of the Union address. Throughout the entire event, you couldn't help but notice that his wife, Hillary Rodham Clinton, was there to stand by her husband.

To me, Hillary Clinton is the one of the models of what a woman of the 21st century should be like. Politics and her husband's scandals aside, Hillary has proven that women can do it all.

She is an educated woman with a law degree. Before moving into the White House, she was a full-time partner in an Arkansas law firm. She is the mother and role model to a healthy young woman who is attending one of the top universities in the US. In 1983, she was named Arkansas's Woman of the Year and in 1984 she was its Young Mother of the Year.

Hillary has reshaped the role of first lady into one that actively participates in the making of US policies. Her beliefs and passions have been the backbone to introducing new programs in the country. She also wrote her own book, and we all got to read how it takes a village to raise a child. On top of it all, she has been a supportive wife who has put new meaning to the saying "stand by your man." Of course, with the most recent scandal to hit the White House, one might wonder if Hillary is just being blind to what is obvious to the rest of the world. Personally, I'm still not 100 per cent sure of how true all the scandals are. Whether or not they are true, Hillary has done everything she can to keep her family together. Instead of turning her back to her husband, she has been supportive of his every endevour. Amongst all of her other responsiblities, her family is her top priority.

That isn't to say that she is a "lap wife" who nods and smiles at her husband's every whim. Hillary is her own person and has her own interests and talents. She has sculpted out her own place in history where she will be known for more than just being a first lady.

With whatever comes out of the Clinton presidency and whatever happens with the scandals associated with his administration, I personally will always see Hillary Clinton as one of the bright spots in her husband's term in office. Because of her strength and dedication to her beliefs, she has made it to my list of top women role models. Most likely, she'll always be there.