April 8, 2013
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My most memorable Margaret Thatcher moment
Margaret Thatcher.
If you're into UK politics, conservative politics, or just politics in general, you'll know that this woman's name sparks very strong reactions at the extreme ends of the conservative-liberal spectrum. People either hate her or love her.
But I'm of the school of thought that unless that person was truly evil, when they pass on, you should remember their significant contributions to world that made it a better place. Or even if they didn't succeed in making it a better place, remember the ways they tried.
Margaret Thatcher's regular work hours in the British Parliament were well before my time. She resigned from office before I was even born...I think her resignation was even before my parents got married. And I didn't know much about her until I was in Grade 5, collecting random facts so I could kick ass at W5H (it's a general knowledge competition for elementary schools in the Toronto Catholic District School Board...I was team captain at my school for 4 years). While math, science, and literature were usually my topics of strength, it was at that time that I started developing a keen interest in British and Canadian politics.
I don't think I ever really embraced Margaret Thatcher's policies or views. But there was always something about her that prevented me from disliking her. I shouldn’t say “something” since I know exactly what it was. She was a woman of great determination and personal fortitude. She was not one to be trifled with. And despite all her flaws and failings, she did the best that she could with what she had and pulled Great Britain out of the darkness into which it had fallen after WWII.
Let’s not get into the particulars. This is not intended to be a blog post to bicker about what you liked/disliked about Margaret Thatcher. It's about what she meant to me. So I’m separating her politics from her personal attributes. Anyone who would call her a weak, unremarkable pansy is clearly not being objective.
She showed the world that a woman can be a leader. Not just the leader of a team. Not just the leader of a country. She was the leader of Great Britain – one of the most powerful nations in the world (and before you argue, recall how much of the world was, at one point, a British colony). She also wasn’t the leader of Great Britain at the height of its power. In fact, she was the Prime Minister of Great Britain at one of its low points in history – arguable one of *the* lowest. Despite these immense external challenges, she had the added hurdle of being a woman at a time when equality for women was still in its infancy.
What’s important to me in a discussion about Margaret Thatcher’s life is that she blazed a trail through one of the most arduous and damaging of social thickets. It’s politics, which is inherently ugly. It’s public, which is daunting even for the most outspoken of us. And it was on the international stage. There aren’t many women who can say that they were able to achieve what the Iron Lady achieved in an environment that was even half as challenging (and I'm not talking about the trials and tribulations of individuals with a tough life...I'm talking about widespread, permanent, societal impacts).
So on this day, when I learned of the passing of this very significant role model, I will share a conversation I had with my mom when I was 14 years old.
Shortly after I graduated from elementary school, my mom asked me what I wanted to be when I grow up. I said, "I want to be Prime Minister of Canada."
My mom laughed and very seriously said, "Little girls don't become Prime Minister."
I very sternly and sharply responded, "If Margaret Thatcher can be the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, then little girls can grow up to become the Prime Minister of Canada."
Baroness Thatcher, I thank you for this.
RIP, Iron Lady.Side note: I have since changed my mind about becoming the Prime Minister of Canada, but that is neither here nor there.
