ガラスの天井

2008/6/12 --The Asahi Shimbun, June 11 (IHT/Asahi: June 12,2008)

EDITORIAL: Clinton's withdrawal

ヒラリー氏撤退―ガラスの天井が壊れる日

The term "glass ceiling" first gained currency in the United States to denote invisible barriers in society that limit the advancement of women beyond a certain level in the established hierarchy. The office of the U.S. president lies beyond the ultimate glass ceiling, and Hillary Rodham Clinton sought to reach it. But the quest ended for the New York senator last Saturday, when she conceded defeat in the Democratic primaries and withdrew from the presidential race.

米国に「ガラスの天井」という言葉がある。女性の昇進を阻む、社会の目に見えない障壁のことである。 

中でも、大統領の座はきわめつきの高くて硬い天井のかなたにある。そこに挑戦したヒラリー・クリントン氏の戦いが終わった。民主党予備選での敗北を認め、大統領選から撤退した。 

(denote=～を意味する) (hierarchy=階位、上位の位) (quest=探索、探求、追求、冒険) (concede=自分の負けを公式に認める)

"Although we weren't able to shatter the highest, hardest glass ceiling this time, thanks to you, it's got about 18 million cracks in it," Clinton told her supporters in her concession speech.

「ガラスの天井を打ち破ることはできなかったけれど、皆さんのおかげで１８００万のヒビを入れることができた」。撤退を表明した演説で、クリントン氏はこう語った。 

(shatter=ガラスなどを粉々に粉砕する、砕く) (concession=譲歩、敗北などを認める)

She obviously meant to stress the fact that she had won as many as 18 million popular votes, which was certainly no mean feat. We also presume she wanted to share her triumph as well as her disappointment with her supporters: She had come so close to being elected the first female president of the United States, but that was not to be.

獲得した支持票の多さを言いたかったのだろう。同時に、史上初の女性大統領の誕生まであとひと息のところまで迫った事実を支持者と悔しがり、そして喜び合ったのではなかったか。 

(be no mean feat=～は至難のわざである)

Clinton called the primaries a "turning-point election." Her duel with Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, the first African-American with a realistic chance of winning the presidency, opened a new page in the nation's political history. Regardless of the result, both have successfully challenged society's racist and sexist barriers.

クリントン氏は今回の予備選を「転機の選挙」と呼んだ。初のアフリカ系大統領をめざすオバマ氏との一騎打ちは、米国の政治史に新たなページを開くものだった。どちらが勝とうと、肌の色や性別の壁に対する輝かしい挑戦であったからだ。 

（primaries =primary=予備の、米国の大統領予備選挙）

In recalling her campaign, Clinton noted: "I am a woman, and like millions of women, I know there are still barriers and biases out there, often unconscious." She also said that earlier in the primaries, she was repeatedly asked if a woman could serve as commander in chief.

クリントン氏は「女性への偏見があるのも事実」と振り返った。序盤の選挙戦では、行く先々で「女性に軍の最高司令官が務まるのか」と質問を浴びせられたという。 

（recall=振り返る、顧みる、かえりみる）(unconscious=気がついていない、気づいていない)

Christine Todd Whitman, a former chief of the Environmental Protection Agency who served as New Jersey governor from 1994 to 2001 and is one of the best-known Republican women politicians, recalled the hurdles she experienced in an Op-Ed piece she contributed to The New York Times last weekend. She said of Clinton: "When Mrs. Clinton made points forcefully, people called her shrill, not bold and determined. When (she) teared up, she was labeled weak."

共和党を代表する女性政治家の一人、ホイットマン元環境保護局長官は、かつて州知事選に挑んだ自らの経験を踏まえて、女性候補が直面する障害の大きさを米紙に寄稿した。 

「クリントン氏がはっきり物をいえば、率直というよりいじわるとなり、涙を流せば、やさしいではなく弱い、となった」

(recall=振り返る) (shrill=辛らつな、するどい この言葉は悪い意味で使われることが多い) (bold=勇気のある、度胸のいる、挑戦的な)

Obviously, Clinton's defeat cannot be attributed to her gender alone. Her high-profile status and experience as a former first lady worked against her and ultimately cost her the nomination. She was perceived as the "status quo candidate," as opposed to Obama, who stood for "change."

むろん、敗れた理由を女性であることだけに帰することはできない。元ファーストレディーとしての知名度や経験が、「変化」を訴えたオバマ氏の新鮮さを逆に浮き立たせる形になり、競り合いに負ける要因になった。 

(gender=性､性別) (status quo=現状)

Women and men are supposed to be equal in the United States, but this is not necessarily the case in real life. It was only last year that Nancy Pelosi became the first female speaker of the House--a position that makes her second in succession to the presidency after the vice president. Only 17 percent of House members are women, which places the United States 83rd in the world in such rankings.

男女平等を建前とする米国だが、現実は甘くない。大統領の継承順位が副大統領に次ぐ下院議長に初めて女性が就任したのは昨年だ。下院議員の女性比率は１７％で、なんと世界８３位だ。 

Where women in politics are concerned, much of the rest of the world is way ahead of America. In Scandinavia and Asia in particular, women presidents and prime ministers are quite common. In Chancellor Angela Merkel's Germany, which ranks 17th in the world, women account for 32 percent of the Bundestag.

女性の政治進出では、世界ははるかに先を行く。とくに北欧やアジア諸国では女性大統領や首相も珍しくない。メルケル首相が活躍するドイツは、議員比率でも３２％で１７位だ。 

（Bundestag＝ドイツ連邦議会）

Japan is pathetic. Not only has there never been a woman prime minister, but only 9 percent of Lower House legislators are female. Japan ranks a lowly 135th in the world.

さて、寂しいのは日本だ。首相はおろか、国会議員も少なく、衆院ではわずか９％、世界１３５位にとどまる。 

(pathetic=あわれな、痛ましい)

Neighboring South Korea has revised its election system to require that at least half of the candidates in proportional representation districts be women. As a result, South Korea has quickly overtaken Japan. The proportion of female lawmakers in South Korea now stands at 14 percent.

お隣の韓国は、比例区の候補者の半数を女性にするよう義務づけるなど制度を変え、女性議員の割合は１４％と、あっというまに日本を追い越した。 

(overtake=追い越す、追い抜く)

When half the population is female, it makes every sense to consider talented and capable women for public office. We wonder when Japan will get its Hillary Clinton.

優れた人材を得るのに、人口の半分を占める女性を放っておく手はない。 

日本でもクリントン氏が登場するのはいつのことだろう。 

--The Asahi Shimbun, June 11 (IHT/Asahi: June 12,2008)

朝日新聞 ６月１１日号 （英語版 ２００８年６月１２日発行）