Politics

Sexism Is Playing a Big Role in the 2016 Election

January 26th 2016

Days after "Girls" creator Lena Dunham made headlines for saying that Hillary Clinton has been subjected to "rabidly sexist" media treatment on the campaign trail, a new trending hashtag confirms that the presidential candidate has indeed faced immense sexism while running for office.

On Tuesday morning, conservative radio host Doc Thompson apparently started the hashtag #WordsThatDontDescribeHillary, according to The Washington Post, and swarms of people used this hashtag as an opportunity to attack the presidential contender's appearance. Though male politicians are often mocked for their looks — Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump regularly hear jokes about their hair — criticism of Clinton's appearance date back to her first presidential run in 2007, when many laughed at her for wearing pantsuits. It doesn't end there, either. She has also been criticized for being "unlikable," a character trait that women tend to face more backlash for lacking than men.

Here are some examples of #WordsThatDontDescribeHillary tweets and memes that prove sexism is very much alive on the campaign trail.

While #WordsThatDontDescribeHillary has been praised by those who don't support Clinton, others have called out its sexism towards the presidential candidate. Peter Daou, a former adviser to Clinton and Secretary of State John Kerry, confronted Twitter about the hashtag on Tuesday.

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