The crushing sexism of young Hillary Clinton's America

This is what the country looked like when Hillary Clinton grew up

Hillary Clinton in 1965, the year she graduated high school.
(Image credit: Tim Boyle/Getty Images)

You may have noticed that Tuesday night was historic. Hillary Clinton's rise to the top of her party's ticket is a big deal. Like, a really big deal.

But as with all words endlessly repeated, "historic" is a little shop-worn. What does it mean exactly? Clinton has walked the Earth for nearly seven decades, and a lot has happened. What's the context of her historic first? We know what America looks like today — but what did it look like when she began her journey?

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Emily L. Hauser

Emily L. Hauser is a long-time commentary writer. Her work has appeared in a variety of outlets, including The Daily Beast, Haaretz, The Forward, Chicago Tribune, and The Dallas Morning News, where she has looked at a wide range of topics, from helmet laws to forgetfulness to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.