“When everyone looks good, everyone looks good.” – pro wrestling axiom.
It’s always been my intention to keep politics out of the blog but with the Presidential election less than two weeks away, I find it hard not comment on the implications of what we’re the edge of.
A quick disclaimer: This post is not meant to be Anti-Republican or Anti-Conservative. How one votes is their business and as a storyteller, my first question for my audience is not “who’d you vote for?” Maybe one day over some cold refreshment, I’ll share which Republican principles I passionately agree with. (Stay the hell out of my script, government.)
This post isn’t even meant to be Anti-Donald Trump. Though let me add for the record. I, Tim Davis, Screenwriter, TV Producer and former pro-wrestling referee hereby reject Donald Trump because of his rampant bigotry, racism, homophobia, sexism, White nationalism, penchant for sexual assault, his disrespect of our Democracy, his possible sociopathic tendencies, fraudulent business practices and pathological lying. In whatever order you’d like. So actually, I guess yeah, I’m very Anti-Donald Trump. Sorry, Donald. Next time don’t be such an asshole.
Oh, go ahead and sue me Donald. I could use the publicity. Hey, maybe I’ll get to meet Jessica Drake in court! I mean, I don’t know who that is.
So suffice to say, I’m voting for Hillary Clinton. And the idea of putting Hillary Clinton on the same scale as Donald Trump is at best, intellectual dishonest and at worst, completely delusional. Saying Hillary Clinton is just as bad as Donald Trump is like saying “this Big Mac I just ate for lunch was almost as bad as the day my entire family was killed in a house fire.” And that’s not an exaggeration. Churchill was a sexist alcoholic. Anyone calling him as bad as Hitler would be deemed nuts.
I was for Hillary before I was for Obama. And with respect to the honorable Senator from Vermont, he was unable to dissuade me away from supporting her. I’m not voting for Hillary Clinton because she’s not Donald Trump. (I can think of no living or recently retired politician I would not pick over Trump.)
I’m voting for Hillary Clinton because she’s the most qualified candidate to run for the Presidency in my no longer short lifetime. She’s the single toughest politician I’ve ever seen in said lifespan. She’s overcome more smear, more attacks, more lies, more so-called scandals, more debasement, more sheer persecution than I’ve ever seen. They started on her long before Obama. I remember so many grown-ups in the 1990’s: “Who the hell does she think she is? She’s the first lady! She needs to learn her place.”
Oh, she learned her place alright. Her place is first one across the finish line of every political battle she’s had. Dick Morris and Trey Gowdy are in a “where are they now?” file while Hillary’s on the cusp of her biggest win yet. There’s a name for people like that in sports – Champion.
After all that the overt and covert sexism our society has thrown at her, Hillary stands poised to become the first female President of the United States. And in an election cycle that can only be described as surreal, she’s become the overwhelming rational choice for sanity everywhere accumulating the most votes of any candidate so far.
So yes, I’m voting Hillary. I’m one of the quiet majority that is actually VERY EXCITED AND ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT VOTING HILLARY!!!! Sorry news narrative, all the Hillary voters I know are crazy psyched about it. Yes, we actually do indeed like her.
And not only am I voting for Hillary, I’m voting for equality. No, not because we need a “token female President” to catch up with the rest of the world. But because the prejudices of America still need to be overcome. Voting for Hillary is my way of not listening to the inherent sexism of our society.
If Hillary Clinton were a man, her popularity would be through the roof. If Hillary Clinton were a man with the last name Kennedy, she’d have a statue by now. “BUT THE EMAILS!!!!” George W Bush (hell of a painter) and Karl Rove (yikes) deleted 5 million White House emails. No one cared. A woman does an infinitesimal percentage of a similar infraction and society at large is scandalized? That right there is sexism 101. If you’re mad at Hillary’s emails and not mad at W’s, I highly suggest you have some gender-equality figuring out to do.
And you know something? I might have deleted the same emails. It’s politics. It’s a tough business. Show me your favorite politician and I’ll show you similar corruption. It’s more ridiculous than deflate-gate at this point. (How’s that ratings drop, Goodell? Good job.)
It’s quite remarkable that when I ask people often very specific reasons why they dislike Hillary I get two kinds of answers either a) long debunked conspiracy theories (she has in fact murdered zero people) or b) these vague, amorphous blanket judgements. “I can’t explain why I just don’t like her.” Who’d have thought ambiguity could spark such passion?
“She’s shady…she’s suspicious…she’s mean…I just don’t like her.” She’s arguably the most vetted politician to get this close to the oval office. As far as the mean stuff goes, I’ve never seen her more harsh than her male counterparts which leads me to wonder if there’s some kind of sociological thing going in our culture. Does her yelling to defend herself remind us of when Mom used to yell us to finish our chores? Do we as a culture not like seeing women in such forceful roles?
“But she wrote mean emails about the Bernie campaign” So what? Seriously, so what? Welcome to big league politics. Bernie himself said he wrote mean emails about the Clinton camp! And I should hope so. They were fighting a high stakes game. Remember when Obama called Joe Biden stupid on a conference call? Upset about that one? Of course not, because men are expected to do that. A woman does it – GASP! Spare my blushes!!
Hillary hasn’t had to break a glass ceiling. She’s had to break through a glass ceiling that was covered in concrete while covered in mud and shackled in chains that spelt out “Double Standard.”
And she is far from alone. Hillary represents the plight of far too many women who don’t get paid as much male counterparts, don’t get the respect they deserve and are still pushing past second class citizen status.
One of the front lines in the battle for equality is my own industry – Hollywood. There’s been much written and talked about in regards to gender issues in the movie and TV business. There’s good news – progress and awareness for the issue has grown in the past few years. There’s bad news – there’s a hell of a lot more than needs to be done.
I don’t know what the answer is. I’m just one guy trying to sell some screenplays and making some movies I hope you’ll enjoy, dear reader.
I do know we need to talk about it more. I do know that Hollywood, our culture at large and the living generations have a lot to figure in regards to equality. Being quiet won’t help. Being defensive, yelling and screaming won’t help. But talking about it might.
So allow to share with you some experiences I’ve had and why I’m proud to write in these pages – we need gender equality in Hollywood right now.
The majority of bosses I’ve had in the Entertainment Business have in fact been women. Actually, the majority of bosses I’ve had in my life had been women. Most of them were great – driven, passionate, inspirational leaders. A few of them were shit – power-hungry, insecure, abusive. I could say the exact same thing about all the male bosses I’ve had. Because women, like men, are people.
Things are improving in Hollywood, albeit too slowly. But I noticed something this past year that I found very interesting. I did an enormous amount of pitching. The majority of “yes, I’d love to read your script” came from women. Like A LOT. I don’t have the exact stat (writer not a mathematician) but I’d guess it was around 70% of my “yeses” came from women. It got to the point where I was only seeking women to pitch to. (And uh, don’t give me the “but women execs are nicer than men execs” No. No, they are not. No one has the time to waste on a sympathy read.)
I can’t tell you why this track record has happened. No, I’m not flirting with them or bribing them or anything like that. I pride myself on professionalism. Maybe it’s because my stories are more intimate character dramas concentrating on people over concept? Or maybe the concepts I have appeal to the female demo that’s growing in genre? Maybe because I treat these women like equals and with respect? Maybe none or all of the above – I don’t know and I don’t ask. Once I get a yes, the script is mailed with a big “Thank You.”
People fear equality in an irrational sense. “If we give X more jobs, then there will be less jobs for us.” Before you email with examples of that happening, studies have shown that equal opportunity has lead to growth and expansion in many industries. An interesting read on the subject here from someone who I’m guessing is not a bleeding liberal: http://conversableeconomist.blogspot.com/2012/08/equal-opportunity-and-economic-growth.html
In other words, THEY are not coming to take YOUR job. THEY are coming for THEIR job which may in fact create a lot more of YOUR job. My own experience say my opportunities in my industry increase exponentially because of an increase in women gatekeepers in Hollywood. So keep ‘em coming, I say, I got a lot more scripts to pitch.
Inclusion is vital in Hollywood. There’s a limited number of plot lines and jokes. There’s a limitless number of ways to tell those plot lines and jokes when all ethnicities, cultures, orientations and genders (oh, the people who think there’s only two – they’re in for a shock this next century) are brought to the table. And no it will not be done at the expense of the White Man.
It’s always interesting to hear those who voice opposition to equality. Some basically say “I will not let you do to me what I’m doing to you.”
My girlfriend is writer. It makes me furious to think opportunities will be denied her just because she’s a women but I know they are. It’s happening and it needs to change. Some of the best producers I know are women. Some of the most kick-ass people creating their own brands and kicking down doors are actresses. The new trailblazers in the industry bring new stories, new visions and new frontiers are in fact women. “Murder Made Easy” a feature film written by yours truly, just wrapped production and our producer was a woman who was smart, tough and invaluable in making sure we got every shot we needed in the schedule and budget allotted.
When I look at who has inspired me the past few years as I fight this good fight in screenwriting, the majority of them are women.
While we have a long, long way to go and I certainly have not been perfect in this area, equality should be a no-brainer. Putting barriers in front of someone is asking for those same barriers to be put in front of you one day. I put these words on the page saying I stand with the moral justice that is equal rights for all. But there’s a selfishness to it, because I’ve seen the benefits to my own career the equality has brought. I want those people brought to the table because they may be the exact people who will look at me to write their stories.
Or as Hillary Clinton put it at the Convention: “when any barrier falls in America, for anyone, it clears the way for everyone.”
I’m with her. Because she’s for me.
Don’t forget to vote for freedom, for democracy and for equality.
The Handsome Timmy D Express is proud to be a part of:
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http://thedanandtravisshow.libsyn.com/
and
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The Handsome Timmy D Express 