There doesn’t seem to be any end to Donald Trump’s misogyny. The apprentice-president recently referred to female morning show host Mika Brzezinski as looking as though she was “bleeding badly from a face lift”. The reason? He didn’t think too much of her coverage of his administration. This came a day after he was seen singling out an Irish reporter during a press meet to admire her “nice smile”. That footage has now gone viral, sparking debate about the president’s casual practice of sexism.
Democrats and Republicans have both condemned Trump’s derogatory remarks about Brzezinski’s appearance and have asked him to stop with the personal attacks but he seems undeterred by the criticism. The president once again called the show ‘low rated’ despite several lawmakers condemning his latest outburst.
The sexism in US politics, which was apparent throughout the presidential election campaign, is certainly not new. Yet what is worrying is how Trump’s blatant misogyny has continued all the way to the White House. That several Republicans have chosen not to defend him is to be welcomed, but either his advisers are not advising him well or he refuses to listen to them. This is kind of behaviour is harming his reputation and America’s image in the world. It is ironic that the First Lady Melania Trump stands up against online bullying, but her own husband uses his twitter account to bully opponents and critics.
At the same time, media companies’ own role in gender-based discrimination needs to be discussed. It is good to see Trump’s personal attack on Ms Brzezinski being widely condemned, but the US media entities need to walk the walk. There have been openly misogynistic attacks by the western media on successful women.
Let’s hope this ends soon, because, as they say, gender sensitivity begins at home.
