by Katie Castro

Created on: March 02, 2007   Last Updated: March 05, 2011

Diversity is America's greatest strength, and perhaps its greatest attributes. In nearly 231 years of often turbulent history, the United States has been a forerunner in breaking the barriers of racism and sexism. Thirsty for modernism and notorious for radicality, the U.S. appears to have something revolutionary brewing in its melting pot. For the first time in American history, two political minorities, (African-American Ohio senator Barack Obama and former first lady and New York senator Hilary Clinton) seeking the presidential office, have a genuine chance of being nominated for their party's platform. Their candidacy is not in question, nor is their eligibility. However, is America ready for a female or a minority president?

As Americans, we like to think of ourselves as the heroes of the free world, judging one another on merits and not skin color or sex. Those are nasty old world habits that inhibit progress with their impracticality. Polls concerning the potential Democratic part nominees show a warm acceptance of diversity in the highest office of the land. In a recent Gallup poll, 86-percent of eligible voters would vote for a qualified woman, while 93-percent would vote for an African-American. While these numbers show great promise and impressive progress from a generation ago, the advent of political correctness inhibits honest responses. Polls like this tend to be unreliable because there is quite a difference between what one says he or she will do and how he or she will actually vote when it comes down to the real thing.

This uncertainty stems form several factors. In the case of a "Madame President," international and domestic credibility are in question. The whole world has not yet joined the modern bandwagon in acceptance of women as leaders. Several Middle Eastern nations, including the increasingly important Saudi Arabia, consider women inferior and may show staunch reluctance to conduct business with a nation that has a woman as its Chief of State. This potential for jeopardized diplomacy is enough to sway the votes of even the most liberal voters.

Domestically, demographics show that fewer women would vote for a female president than men would, simply because women are more critical of each other and demand a higher level of perfection in a woman candidate than they would in a man. Too often, when a woman runs for office, it is about being man enough for the job. No matter how macho a woman may seem in her policies, the truth and the

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