As with past female leaders, we unfairly expect Hillary Clinton to have superhuman qualities

To the editor: Hillary Clinton is a woman who has been picked apart ever since she came on the political scene many years ago. The media masses are having a feeding frenzy with a barrage of comments, including: She is too tough, but she isn’t tough enough; she should soften her image, but not enough to make her look too sensitive; she shouldn’t laugh out loud, yet she is too serious; and she should have a plan, when she in fact does have a plan that no one listens to. (“In the overwhelmingly male world of American politics, Hillary Clinton’s milestone matters,” editorial, July 28)

The demands put upon this female candidate are impossible for anyone to fulfill, and yet Clinton holds her head up high and with complete determination and perseverance. Great women in history always had to go the extra mile to prove themselves as super human — it’s time to recognize this double standard of how we measure people’s accomplishments based on gender.

Republican nominee Donald Trump mocks and insults people to bolster himself, but he always gets a pass. If we would just stop talking for a minute and really take the time to listen, we would learn a lot.

Frances Terrell Lippman, Sherman Oaks

..

Watching the congresswomen at the Democratic National Convention and the nomination of Hillary Clinton for president made me think of my mom, the woman who made me believe I could do and be anything I wanted.

Clinton is one of these strong, smart and caring women who are helping to change the future for all of our children. My own special angel is smiling down from heaven, delighted to see how far we’ve come.

Joyce Altschule-Pisarev, Simi Valley

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook