When a Woman Tops the Ticket

I remember just where I was on July 12, 1984—about to return to the newsroom from maternity leave, anxious about leaving my first born, my precious little daughter, unable to imagine what it would feel like to satisfy the demands of both a job and a very young child because the workplace was so inhospitable and there were so few other working mothers to show the way.

My sister called, and the thrill in her voice burst through the phone line. A woman, Geraldine Ferraro, had been chosen as Walter Mondale’s vice presidential running mate, the first time ever in our nation’s history. And I remember what my sister said. She said that now even my daughter could be president!

Thirty-two years later, I’ve lived to see that possibility come alive.

For the first time in our history, we heard the voice of a woman enunciate what she would do with the most powerful job on the planet.

It was, for this Jewish feminist, a shehecheyanu moment, the moment that feels like a prayer, expressing our deepest gratitude to God for enabling us to reach

Jane Eisner in “Hillary Clinton Answers This Jewish Mother’s Prayer,” Forward, July 28, 2016.