Let me just go ahead and put this out there — former Vice President Dick Cheney (like Donald Rumsfeld before him) is an angry, bitter, old white man who cannot fathom the idea of having to accept a black woman as his equal or superior.
In fact, as was noted in a 2008 biography of Cheney titled, Angler Don Rumsfeld made no effort at hiding his lack of respect for Condoleezza Rice as an “equal” or “peer”. Rumsfeld would not attend meetings called by Rice and, according to one report in the book, on more than one occasion left her in tears due to his lack of respect for her as a colleague.
In his new political memoir, In My Time: A Personal and Political Memoir, former Vice President Cheney recounts an alleged meeting in his office with then National Security Advisor Condi Rice where she appears in his office “teary-eyed” and admits she was wrong for not believing his claims that Iraq was attempting to secure uranium for its nuclear program.
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But let’s be honest here — none of this surprises those of us who are professional black women, who have worked for older powerful men. We have all felt what Dr. Rice felt when despite our qualifications, achievements and intelligence, we are marginalized, ignored, debased, or simply invisible to men like Cheney and Rumsfeld. I can tell you first hand it is painful and degrading and I am not surprised at any human being (male or female) who might cry in the face of such unprofessional treatment.
I think what has some of us perplexed is why doesn’t Dr. Rice come out and blast Cheney and Rumsfeld for their callous and mocking commentary on her. Or better still, why doesn’t former President George W. Bush come to her defense as did former Secretary of State Colin Powell. Powell said earlier this week that Cheney’s comments about himself and other ex-administration officials amounted to “cheap shots.”
In the final analysis — what we are seeing here is the calculated shredding of Rice as a competent leader and decision maker. Sadly, her experience is quite common: Educated, powerful, single woman, no children gets placed in a position of authority and the “ole boys” don’t like it. Add to her resume that she happens to be black, a scholar, a concert pianist, and Stanford University provost, and you have a perfect storm for men like Rumsfeld (who hails from the World War II generation) and Cheney (who dodged service to his country in Vietnam) who will never see a black woman as an equal or as someone whose opinion should be valued and considered.
I think sadder still is that Dr. Rice is not alone in her experience. This very high profile example of yet another powerful black woman being ridiculed or marginalized by powerful white men, is a teachable moment for us as a nation. I can only hope that Dr. Rice will speak up, and out soon about the allegations made by the former vice president, set the record straight, and help young professional women to prepare themselves for such pettiness and in doing so teach women how to successfully move beyond them.
Sophia A. Nelson is author of the new book, “Black Woman Redefined: Dispelling Myths and Discovering Fulfillment in the Age of Michelle Obama” (Benbella, May 2011).