MANCHESTER, NH — When I saw a news blurb on Facebook that Lena Dunham was coming to Manchester, I was incredibly excited, yet somewhat confused. What could the award-winning writer, director, actor, producer — and my personal feminist hero — possibly be doing in little ol’ New Hampshire? After some further research on Google, I found out that Dunham was actually tagging along on the campaign trail, touring New Hampshire to promote Hillary Clinton for President.
To be honest, I rolled my eyes at this. Hearing Lena Dunham speak about why I should vote for Hillary sounded a lot less appealing than her typical raunchy and radical dialogue that has helped her to become “the voice of the millennial generation.” On top of this, I shuddered at the thought of being hounded to volunteer for the Clinton Campaign, when I already had my mind made up to vote for Bernie Sanders in the primary next month. It’s not that I don’t like Hillary, I just like Bernie more. His progressiveness and ingenuity excites me in a way that Hillary just can’t seem to match.
Regardless of the reason for Dunham’s visit to Manchester, I decided I would go to the event and keep an open mind about what she had to say about the upcoming election. On Friday afternoon, I headed over to the campaign headquarters on Hanover Street with my friend Maria. We were greeted by cheerful volunteers who asked us to write down our information on the sign-in sheet. I wrote down my first name, but withheld any identifying information, fearful of the relentless calls and e-mails I have experienced from other campaigns in the past.
It was packed inside the main room, but Maria and I somehow managed to maneuver into the third row. As we waited for Lena Dunham’s arrival, I scanned the room, admiring the motivational quotes, social media info, and the “Ten Commandments of Campaigning” that adorned the walls in a bold red, white and blue color scheme. Although I don’t typically enjoy crowds, I felt surprisingly at ease sardined among the herd of buzzing young people, mostly women, many of whom gripped copies of Dunham’s autobiography, “Not That Kind of Girl.” These were my people.
The event was scheduled from 2-3 p.m., but by 3:05 p.m. the guest of honor was still no where in sight and the crowd was growing restless. Suddenly, members of the campaign staff rushed into the room and used their arms to part the sea of people and make way for Lena herself. She was beaming and waving wildly, clad in a ridiculous yet wonderful customized sweater dress, with “HILLARY” in block letters across her chest. As she passed me, she touched my arm and said hello. In that moment I felt like a 16-year-old girl from another generation meeting Paul McCartney. I was speechless.
Lena stood on the podium and greeted the crowd. She seemed harried and out of breath, as if she had just roller-skated the entire 50 miles from her morning campaign event in Portsmouth. She apologized for her tardiness and began her speech by telling the crowd about her own transformation, from a naïve young adult who was wholly disinterested in the political process, to the outspoken feminist symbol she is now.
“Nothing gets me angrier than when somebody implies that I’m voting for Hillary Clinton because she’s a woman,” she said. “It’s not like we have some feminist version of beer goggles called ‘estrogen lenses’ that just causes us to go walking up to the nearest vagina and vote for them.”
Lena Dunham came and went in what seemed like the blink of an eye. She concluded her 10-minute speech, thanked the audience, and was whisked out by staff members to catch a plane back to L.A. I could sense the unanimous disappointed sigh of the audience that she was not staying for meet-and-greets or book signings. I was just excited I was able to see (and touch) her.
When I really think about it, I don’t believe a celebrity’s — or anyone else’s — endorsement of a politician could sway who I am voting for in the primary. Just because Lena Dunham, someone I deeply respect and look up to, is choosing to vote for Hillary, doesn’t mean I should necessarily follow. That is the same as if every Patriots fan voted for Donald Trump just because Tom Brady supports him. I certainly hope voters in New England are wiser than that.
I believe the presidency should be more than a popularity contest based on your last name or the famous people who support you. Instead, I want to vote for a candidate based on his or her values and vision for the direction of our country. I absolutely believe there will be a woman in the White House during my lifetime, and hopefully it will be sooner rather than later. If that woman is Hillary Clinton, I will stand behind her.
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Rebecca Howard is a Manchester native and a first-year graduate student at UNH working toward her master’s in Justice Studies. She is especially passionate about social justice reform in the American governmental system. In her spare time she enjoys running, cooking, and binge-watching crime shows on Netflix.
