Sympathy And Kim Campbell And The Tories example essay topic

Even though times are changing and the number of double standards between men and woman are declining, it is still uncommon to see a woman in a prominent leading position. Woman's rights have always been a major social issue, and within recent years women have begun to take charge. Kim Campbell is one prominent woman who has devoted the majority of her life to politics and feminism. Having the title as 'first woman Canadian Prime Minister,' with a list full of other major accomplishments, Campbell continues to be a longtime champion of woman's rights and involve herself in politics to this day. Kim Campbell, born Avril Phaedra Douglas Campbell on March 10th, 1947, was not particularly fond of any of her given names, and consequently adopted the first name Kim in her teens. She was educated at the University of British Columbia, specializing in international politics and Soviet government, and obtained a doctorate at the London School of Economics.

She entered politics with the Vancouver School Board, and lectured in political science until 1978. Two years later she became a trustee on the Vancouver School board only to be appointed Chairman in 1983. In Kim Campbell's book, Time and Chances, she points out that the School board is a good place to "make your first mistakes". Campbell was first elected to the Canadian House of Parliament in 1988 and became the first Progressive Conservative member of Parliament from a Vancouver district. In 1989, the current Prime Minister serving at that time, Brian Mulroney appointed Kim Campbell to the position of Minister of State for Indian and Northern Affairs. Campbell was then appointed Canada's first female Minister of Justice (1990-1993), then briefly became the first female Minister of Defence.

Mulroney recognized some of Campbell's good ideas such as the USA-Canada Free Trade Agreement. As for her private life, Kim married twice. First to a man named Nathan Divinsky in 1972 but divorced 11 years later in 1983. Her second marriage was to Howard Eddy in 1986, again ending in divorce only 7 years later in 1993. In Febuary of 1993, Brian Mulroney announced his retirement. The Progressive Conservatives voted Kim Campbell in as Party Leader and Prime Minister.

Her swift rise in popularity became a shock to some Canadians. The fact that Campbell was a woman initially made her very popular, and for a while it seemed that she might have a chance of re paring the Conservative party's reputation, which had been badly damaged after a number of scandals during the Mulroney government. Accordingly, an election was quickly called, and the new Prime Minister hoped to carry this boost of popularity to an electoral victory. However, many Canada ins found Campbell to have an overly condescending and pretentious tone and this was one of the beginning contributors of her fall in popularity. During the 1993 election, Campbell had decided to employ an American company make a commercial that mocked Liberal party leader Jean Chr " etien's physical disability, Bell's palsy, which did not go over well with most Canadians. The Canadian people responded to this commercial by giving him sympathy and Kim Campbell and the Tories suffered because of it.

Campbell's awkward performance in the campaign and her inability to distance herself from the extremely unpopular Brian Mulroney propelled the party from defeat to disaster. The Tories suffered a devastating loss. The Conservative seats in the House of Commons were reduced to two and Campbell lost her Vancouver seat. This is known as the greatest defeat in history and the destruction of the Progressive Conservative party. Though many believe that the destructive outcome of the 1993 election was ultimately Campbell's fault, after examination it is clear other factors contributed to the loss. First of all, Campbell rose very quickly in her political standings.

Only 7 years after entering politics, she found herself the Prime Minister of Canada therefore not having the usual experience a strong leader contains. Also, the Tories were completing their second term in power and the people of Canada were displeased with Brain Mulroney by the time of his resignation. There was also the factor that Campbell was voted in by her party, not elected by the people of Canada. When the election came, Canadians did not want the Conservatives in power any longer and the Liberals were elected leaving the PC party in pieces. So the overwhelming defeat of the Conservatives was not entirely Kim Campbell's fault, but rather a joint effort by both Campbell and Brian Mulroney. Although Campbell suffered this major defeat, she still carries a large list of accomplishments and is known for many good ideas.

Politically, Campbell is most widely recognized for the record amount of legislation passed during her three years as minister of justice, when she was responsible for Canada's criminal law and successfully introduced policies supporting gun control, gay rights and the rights of sexual assault victims. Campbell speaks frequently in public and as a media commentator on issues relating to women, international relations after the Cold War, democratization and U.S. -Canada relations and trade. Her best-selling memoir, Time and Chance, was published in Canada in 1996. After her defeat, Campbell retired from politics and returned to teaching where she was offered a fellowship at Harvard University. Since then, however, Kim returned to politics, having been appointed by Prime Minister Jean Chr " etien to the post of Consul General in Los Angeles, California, ending in 2000. She brought a Canadian perspective on world issues, and promoted trade development and investment especially in the areas of multi-media, information technology, biotechnology and the entertainment industry.

Campbell, being a long-standing supporter of woman's rights, has chaired the Council of Women World Leaders (CWWL) from 1999, passing the chair to Mary Robinson just this past month. Campbell then re assumed the presidency of the International Woman's Forum, a global organization of women of significant and diverse achievement. She continues to serve as the Faculty Chair of the CWWL, a function she also fulfills for the Project on Justice for Societies in Transition. Campbell has been a Senior Fellow of the Gorbachev Foundation of North America in Boston, a member of the International Council of the Asia Society of New York and of the Pacific Council on International Policy in Los Angeles and is also a founding member and Deputy President of the Club of Madrid, and organization of current and former heads of government and state devoted to democratization.

She is a director of the International Leadership Association and serves on The Corporation of Northeastern University, Boston and the list goes on. Kim Campbell has completed a lot in her lifetime. She has shown that a woman and accomplish just as much as any man which is a strong belief feminists stand by. Campbell is also a strong example of faith. After having the largest political defeat, she did not hide from politics for the rest of her life, but in fact embraced the opportunity for a second chance when it arose. To this day, Campbell continues to involve herself in political affairs and is still a strong symbol of woman's rights.

Bibliography

- web - Wikipedia Encyclopedia - web -National Library of Canada- Kim Campbell - web -National Library of Canada / National Archives of Canada - web -Encyclopedia Britannica- Kim Campbell - web -Harvard University- Faculty Index - web -The Paula Gordon Show- Guest: Kim Campbell - web -American Program Bureau- Kim Campbell - web -Brown University News Service - web -The James MacGregor Burns Academy of Leadership - web -Austin College News: Kim Campbell - web -PC: Progressive Conservative Party of Canada.