Shock. Anger. Grief: How Women Worldwide Reacted to Hillary Clinton's Defeat

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Hillary Clinton addresses her staff and supporters about the election defeat, in New York City on November 9. Neil Buchanan writes that even though Clinton's supposed scandals never amounted to anything, we were inundated with... Carlos Barria/reuters

For years now, Hillary Clinton has ranked as one of the most famous and influential women in the world―​winning fans among the world's female leaders for her advocacy of global feminism and her work championing women and girls.

The next step, many thought, would be to the White House where she would elevate her feminist foreign policy and join the ranks of a powerful, growing group of female leaders sweeping into office across Europe, Africa, and Latin America. After all, 59 countries have already had a female head of state. All the polls indicated the U.S. was next.

But then early Wednesday morning it all came crashing down.

As we continue to digest the results, reactions from women leaders worldwide have poured in. Female heads of state Angela Merkel in Germany and Theresa May in the U.K. have tweeted out the customary formal congratulations. The Liberian president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, a Clinton friend, told the BBC she was "extremely saddened" by Trump's victory but would "give him the benefit of the doubt."

Canada's first female prime minister, Kim Campbell, was less diplomatic, calling Trump's victory a "disaster not just for Canada but for the world." While the female leader of the far right leader French National Front, Marine Le Pen, tweeted a hearty "Congratulations… to the free American people!"

What about regular women? As a part of a project to bring more women's voices into discussion of foreign policy, I asked women around the world for their reaction, and was surprised at how deeply connected many felt by the surprising defeat of Hillary Clinton, and the message it sent.

Egyptian feminist and author Mona Eltahawy stayed up all night in London to watch the returns from a sports bar in London. "We started out upbeat and confident, and the Brits said, 'never say never,' because of Brexit. Then Florida swung wildly and we were on a rollercoaster heading down."

I spoke with Eltahawy​ around 7 a.m. in London, just as it was Clinton had lost. "It's an awful day," she said, wearily. Eltahawy​ drew parallels between the misogyny she heard coming from Trump and what she observed as a reporter in Egypt, where she was arrested and beaten.

"Never again can the U.S. lecture us on extremism or misogyny or on how we should treat women. This election sends a message to women in Egypt and across the world that powerful men can sexually assault you and worse and still be elected president."

Mona Eltahawy—Egyptian feminist and author.
Mona Eltahawy—Egyptian feminist and author. Christina Asquith

There was similar shock in Mexico, where Natalia Bonilla, a filmmaker is living in Mexico City, says women are rethinking their perception that the U.S. represents egalitarian ideals and freedom after the electorate displayed such chauvinism. Latin American countries are notorious for a culture of machismo toward women, and yet most have voted in female leaders: "Argentina, Chile, Brazil," she says, "and right now in Mexico the newspapers are reporting the leading presidential candidate for the 2018 elections is a woman, Margarita Zavala." She was also First Lady, the wife of the former President of Mexico Felipe Calderón​.

While Clinton felt pressure to appear tough on military issues, women candidates in Mexico find a softer side to appeal to voters, Bonilla said. "Many women here believe having a female president will help poverty and social issues and [that she will] be more nurturing, while male candidates don't pay attention to that because they're focused on security and economics."

Most Mexicans , Bonilla said, are talking about Trump's threats to build a wall and deport en masse. But for others, the defeat of a candidate who was clearly more qualified sends a strong gendered message: "For women, it's a setback. We see the U.S. as a beacon of progress and a place where dreams can come true, so people feel sad and concerned and disillusioned."

One of Turkey's leading businesswoman, Hanzade Dogan Boyner, says even though there was a female candidate, the U.S. campaign lacked a serious discussion on issues affecting women and girls. In Turkey, there has been longstanding political discussion about getting more girls into school, and policies to support an increased number of women in the workplace, such as longer paid maternity leave for women (it's already 6 months compared to zero in the U.S.).

One woman's issue in the U.S. is the absence of women in the upper echelons of business. Yet, "neither of the candidates paid enough attention to women's' issues. Gender equality was not as important as it should have been," says Dogan, founding chairwoman of Turkey's leading internet holding company, Doğan Online, and chairwomen of Aydin Dogan Foundation. "The discussion needs to go deeper...The culture needs to change."

Hanzade Dogan Boyner—one of Turkey’s leading businesswoman.
Hanzade Dogan Boyner—a leading businesswoman in Turkey. Christina Asquith

Although the biggest prize in American politics still remains out of the hands of women, there were some victories: Three senate seats were picked up by women, including by Kamala Harris, the second black woman ever elected as a senator; by Ilhan Omar, a Somali State representative in Minnesota; and by Kate Brown, the first openly LGBT governor in Oregon.

On the global stage, however, those victories for women seemed largely overshadowed.

Elsewhere, women spoke of how the sexism on display in the U.S. elections is reinforcing patriarchal attitudes men already hold in their country. In Jordan, women's rights activists says Clinton's campaign inspired women to change. Now they're grappling with the opposite message.

"This election gave support to the perception that women shouldn't rule," says Samar Muhareb, a woman's rights activist in the Jordanian capital, Amman. "My male friends on Facebook are saying, 'See—even the U.S. doesn't want to be ruled by a woman. They're bossy. They hide things. You can't trust them.' This is what the men are saying now."

Muharab is Director of Arab Renaissance for Democracy and Development, a group that trains, supports and advocates for marginalized groups. She sent me a photo of her and her colleagues slumped over a picnic table in the capital city of Amman looking depressed. "This is the mood today," she wrote. "We left the office angry. We thought we would be celebrating."

Their organization receives U.S. funds to support thousands of women and girls—​especially refugees—​who work inside the camps and in Iraq, Lebanon, Yemen, and elsewhere. As U.S. Secretary of State, Clinton strongly supported funding global initiatives for women and girls. But who knows what Trump will do, Muharab worries. "We were looking forward to having a woman president who supports the equal role of women and is committed to girls rights and education," she says. "Trump doesn't have that same approach."

For women with a foot in both worlds, fear reigns that the worse is yet to come. Salvadoran immigration attorney Susan Cruz lives in Washington, D.C., and says women have reacted to the U.S. elections with hurt, disappointment and fear.

"If we saw the ugly underbelly of racism in the Obama administration, now we're going to see the ugly underbelly of misogyny and sexism under the Trump administration," Cruz says.

And in Ukraine, women's rights activist Anastasiya Hozyainova says most women perceive Trump to be unpredictable and inexperienced. An unstable world has severe consequences for women. " The implications of this presidency are unknown. People don't know what to expect," she says. And how are most Ukrainian women reacting? "Grief," she says.

This article was published in partnership with Across Women's Lives and The Fuller Project for International Reporting. Christina Asquith is the founder of The Fuller Project for International Reporting and senior editor and director at Across Women's Lives.

Uncommon Knowledge

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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

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Christina Asquith

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