The "of" woman in Congress opens the door to machismo at home

25-N, that is, tomorrow, is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and we must take good note of what happened yesterday in Congress, of the insults that Vox uttered against Irene Montero because the violence macho has a common story.

Thomas Osborne
Thomas Osborne
24 November 2022 Thursday 17:51
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The "of" woman in Congress opens the door to machismo at home

25-N, that is, tomorrow, is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and we must take good note of what happened yesterday in Congress, of the insults that Vox uttered against Irene Montero because the violence macho has a common story. It may be thought that there are different types of attacks, that the attacks on the minister occurred in the heat of political battles. But it's not like that. Behind Vox's words is the attempt to dispossess Montero of her power, capacity and freedom by presenting her -in a long macho regression- as the woman who belongs to a man. He depersonalizes her, and all of her.

"The only merit you have is having studied Pablo Iglesias in depth," said the deputy Toscano. "Montero is where he is because an alpha male has fertilized her," said a Ciudadanos councilor on Tuesday. It is this common thread directed against the minister – a senior government official – who seeks to devalue her. And the devaluation of women, the objectification that subtly strips them of their full rights is the field in which sexist violence operates, from subtle comments to aggression.

The extreme right has made a banner of anti-feminism because great social advances make them uncomfortable. And the right-wing parties would do well to set clear boundaries for some discourses. You can like Irene Montero a lot or not at all. It can be considered that she has erred in the law of "only yes is yes" and in other things. But the debate these days is not about this. Perpetrating sexist insults in the chamber has a reflection in the houses, in the streets.