As I approach my 47^th birthday I am as ever dismayed and perplexed by the progress, or lack thereof, of women in American society.  Before the usual crowd gets all excited let me say that I’m not talking about the glass ceiling, wage inequality or the larger share of household chores women are still doing.  I’m talking about the truest barometer for achieving equality with men:  Independence of thought. 

What’s brought about my latest round of exasperation with the so-called ‘women’s movement’ (not!) is the media’s frenzied announcement that Oprah will be supporting Barack Obama’s campaign for president.  I see headlines about it everywhere. 

Anyone familiar with Oprah or the show knows that she is deeply committed to and focused on the betterment and progress of the African-American race.  Consequently it is no great surprise that she would like to see an African-American win the presidency.  So why is this such big news?  Because Oprah has developed a cult of women followers, numbering in the millions, who apparently don’t mind being told how to dress, what to eat, what to read and now… how to vote.

Does the wide-eyed pliability of Oprah’s mostly female following seem reminiscent of any particular segment of the population to you?  Well for me, children come to mind.  Indeed, what the Oprah phenomenon proves, sadly enough for the women’s movement, is that some of us ‘women’ still need a mommy or a daddy telling us what to do.  This doesn’t speak well for my gender and, judging by the grins on men’s faces when the subject of Oprah comes up, such cult-like devotion to an entertainer is a serious detraction from the credibility of the ‘movement.’

The fact is I like Oprah.  I respect her for what she’s accomplished and though I haven’t watched it in years I have enjoyed her program in the past.  But as much as I might find her show entertaining, no way is she going to tell me who I should vote for as the future president of this country, particularly not when race is clearly the driving force behind her own choice of a candidate.

What I want to ask the Oprah cult to consider is this:  Who tells Oprah how to vote?  The answer, of course, is no one, because Oprah is her own person.  She has achieved what we all are supposed to want, true independence and adulthood.  So, should Oprah succeed in handing Barack Obama the gift of a few million votes from her horde of worshippers it will be a sure sign that some of us haven’t come very far after all.