Editor’s Note: This article is from Everywoman’s Magazine, November 1956,В Vol. 6, No. 11, p. 12. This was found at a garage sale by Mary Jo Smith in Oregon, a friend of Carol van Strum (my environmental law mentor) and typed by Carol. — EFC
The “Everywoman” editor writes:
“We asked Sen. Kennedy…to write this article because we felt he was ideally fitted to do it. Son of Joseph P. Kennedy, former Ambassador to Great Britain, he is young (39), a brilliant writer (his Profiles in Courage is a best seller) and has been in Congress for 10 years, four as a Senator from Massachusetts.”
The question of a woman becoming president is one we’re still concerned with today, 52 years later, and it feels increasingly tangible following the primary roles of Gov. Sarah Palin and Sen. Hillary Clinton in the presidential race. We now feel we are that much closer to seeing the day when a woman will take office, and JFK’s article is all the more inspiring as a result.
Many thanks to Mary Jo Smith for recovering the article from the November 1956 issue of Everywoman’s Magazine, and to Carol Van Strum, for faithfully transcribing it into digital format for us to share with you today. –Rachel Asher
Today’s Appointment Schedule for President Lucy R. Jones, as released by the White House Press Secretary, is as follows:
10 a.m. — Review troops at Andrews Air Force Base as Commander-in-Chief of all U.S. Armed Forces.
12 Noon – Address U.S. Chamber of Commerce Convention on her Administration’s Tax, Fiscal and Tariff Policies.
2 p.m. — Press Conference
3 p.m. — Confer with British and French Prime Ministers on current threats to peace.
Ridiculous, some will say; why not? say others. It will never happen, some are saying. It should never happen, say still others. Parents react differently, too. “Wouldn’t it be wonderful if my daughter grew up to be President?” some mothers are thinking. “I certainly wouldn’t want any daughter of mine in that job,” say others.
Before becoming too deeply involved in the merits of the question as to whether a woman should ever become President, we ought first to ask ourselves: What are the chances of a woman becoming President? Is the above hypothetical press release on an imaginary woman President of the future a complete fantasy, a fictional dream impossible of realization in the foreseeable future? The answer to this question may throw considerable light on the question of how desirable it would be to have a woman President.