Qualifiers

My Rabbi recently wrote an article, “Don’t Call Me a Female Rabbi,” in which she argued “As a rabbi, I speak from a place of faith and moral leadership. Gender is one aspect of my identity; it does not define me.” She wants her work to speak for itself, “no adjectives or qualifiers necessary.”

As someone often referred to as a “female college president,” I could certainly relate to her sentiment.  My colleagues were never referred to as male presidents and their accomplishments – or their failures - were never contextualized by their gender.  However, I come from a different generation, and I know that the qualifier was an inspiration to young women seeking to follow a similar path. When I was the first female president at a small college in a rural area, women stopped me in the street to tell me how proud they were to have me in a leadership position in their community. They were thrilled when the newspaper referred to me as a female president. I was a symbol of possibility for them.

With the Rabbi’s admonition in mind, I made plans to attend a concert at Tanglewood featuring Anna Rakitina, the second woman in history to be named an assistant conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. In fact, the entry on my calendar read, “Tanglewood, female conductor.” If the Boston Symphony Orchestra was going to schedule a female conductor, then I was going to be there to demonstrate that she’d have an audience. Revenue is a factor in determining the Tanglewood season.  

When Anna Rakitina conducts again, I will buy a ticket because she is brilliant, not because she is a female, but she will always deserve recognition for her historical accomplishment. I look forward to a time when there will be no qualifiers necessary, but we may not be there yet.