Sarah Palin’s emergence has exposed the many faces of American elitism and condescension all at once. For some she represents a breath of fresh air in politics and for others she is the biggest threat to the status quo in a long time. The fact that she marches to her own drumbeat and displays a fierce and unforgiving sense of independence frightens people across the political spectrum. The media establishment is quite frankly scared to death of her and doesn’t know what to make of this woman who hails from the great state of Alaska, our last frontier. The former governor of Alaska was not only a star basketball player and mayor of a small town, but she has the audacity to moose hunt, to be stunning, and to challenge her own political party. She tops all of this with an unashamed commitment to her pro-life beliefs and a strong faith in God. Her Down’s syndrome son is proof positive that she is serious about her life principles and morals. The American political landscape has not seen anyone like Sarah Palin, and her life story to date resonates with the lives and interests of a wide range of everyday people all across this nation. Her populist appeal makes her that much more intriguing and fascinating to watch and admire.

Sarah does not try to fit within any of the traditional political, social, or cultural paradigms. She is appealing to regular folks who have felt left out, whose voices have been muted, and who have been pushed to the margins of society. Her charisma stretches across demographic groups, political parties, regions, and genders. She is who the average citizen has been waiting for in American politics --- someone who has established life principles and beliefs and does not always fall in step with a political party or the Washington political establishment. People want to support public servants who exhibit integrity, conviction, independence, and courage, and are not afraid to buck a political party. The former governor of Alaska is that person as evidenced by her accomplishments in Alaska and her fights against the Republican party of that state. Everyday people want political leaders who are committed to principles, not politics or a political party.

Liberal, conservative, female, and male haters all fear the same qualities about Sarah Palin --- her independence, charisma, uniqueness, plainspokenness, sense of humor, courage, conviction, femininity, beauty, and record of accomplishments over such a short life span. The fact that she is not a traditional or liberal feminist, is pro-life, and goes moose hunting totally dispels the feminist arguments and pretty much turns the feminist movement on its head. Her male haters are quite frankly using her as an opportunity to give voice to their own misogyny. The self-proclaimed intellectuals and pundits fear her because she doesn’t speak their high-minded and condescending language. Sarah speaks in a plainspoken, folksy, and real way that is filled with candor and humor --- a vernacular that is comprehensible by and common to ordinary people. In spite of her personal, professional, and executive accomplishments, they attack her and her qualifications because they don’t meet or measure up to the elitists’ self-prescribed standards. This group of haters dismisses her as a “joke” or “whack” job because they don’t understand her or can’t relate to her or the millions of Americans who are just like her and who possess sensibilities, realities, tendencies, and concerns that are similar to hers. These pundits and many in the media and in Washington don’t understand Sarah Palin’s appeal because they are self-absorbed and disconnected from real and mainstream America. Because these self-proclaimed power elites only talk to and among each other and not to and with regular folks, they are completely misinterpreting what everyday people are hungry for. This is the genius of Sarah Palin --- she connects with regular, everyday people like her all across the country.

The media and political voices who believe that they alone are qualified to make certain determinations and decisions about public and political life have exhibited a level of condescension and elitism unlike anything we’ve witnessed in a long time. Purely and simply, they harbor a real and shocking disdain for Sarah Palin and people like her, which should be a harbinger to citizens across racial groups and income classes everywhere. They are giving voice to their long held opinions about people who they believe are not capable of or smart enough to make decisions or be in positions of power and authority in this great nation. This is not a new phenomenon in America; it has simply been silent for awhile and is now rearing its ugly head, thanks to the emergence of Sarah Palin. The kind of hateful and disrespectful treatment that has been directed at the former governor of Alaska ought to be a clarion call to average Americans who are not perceived as qualified, educated, or intelligent. If you don’t talk like the elitists and pundits in media and on the East coast, if you did not attend one of the elite colleges along the Northeast corridor, if you haven’t paid your dues within the Washington establishment, or if you don’t dress or look like them, then you must not know anything and you won’t be taken seriously by them.