Claudia Conway isn’t here to save American democracy. She’s a teenager who not only deserves help but is screaming for it.
America’s so desperate for a last-minute hero to swoop in and save us before what feels like a surreal fever dream takes and completely pushes us over the edge of a cliff.
During the 2016 undecided voters’ townhall, America’s introduced to Ken Bone (‘Red Sweater Guy’). Bone is famously undecided, even still, and somehow captured Americans’ hearts without really doing much. It seems that this election’s media darling is not just any teenager; she’s the daughter of the co-founder of the Lincoln Project and the President’s right-hand woman, Kellyanne Conway.
While Claudia Conway’s situation seems to have a Young Adult dystopian novel formula, it will not save the election or American democracy.
Utilizing TikTok for escapism during these unprecedented times, Ms. Conway’s TikTok shifts into politics to denounce not only her mom but also the POTUS. Not to mention calling out the alleged manufactured media lies in her mom’s camp. Similar to Red Sweater Guy, the internet and media’s enchanted.
Despite the internet’s infatuation with Ms. Conway, her reality seems a little disturbing with red flags of her life at home. This prompted her parent’s current job resignations better to focus their time at home with their kids, but once again, Ms. Conway called out this farce online.
Continuing to divulge her home life online, as most do, isn’t just typical Gen Z musings. As of late, Conway’s TikToks are politically driven observations from behind the enemy lines, so to speak. This throws a major wrench into POTUS’ unified front of downplaying the severity of the current pandemic.
For instance, Conway first broke the story that her mother contracted COVID-19 and other positive test results from POTUS’ administration and anti-maskers unswerving supporters. As well as more than 120 frontline workers in the Capitol complex itself.
Not to be outdone, Kellyanne Conway then clarifies her daughters TikTok via Twitter. Except for her not-so-subtle ageism against her own daughter, dismissing her as a speculative fifteen-year-old. Mrs. Conway then shames the “adults” who should know better; ironically, the adults who should know better and step in include herself.
Claudia Conway herself spoke up about her trauma exploitation from the media, “TO ALL JOURNALISTS/REPORTERS/ANYONE IN THE MEDIA: DO NOT USE MY TRAUMA AS A MEANS FOR PUBLICITY OR PROFIT. IT’S SICKENING. I AM 15 YEARS OLD. EXPLOITING A MINOR PUBLICLY IS DISGUSTING.” A fifteen-year-old who is crying for home stability isn’t the face of the resistance. Her use of social media apps isn’t her rallying cry— it’s just a cry, especially for her mental health.
Glorifying Ms. Conway into some leftist real-life Katniss Everdeen to save America from its own collapse is setting ourselves up for failure and throwing Claudia Conway to the wolves. It happened to Greta Thunberg as well as the Parkland survivors turned advocates.
None of these young persons asked to be in the spotlight; they’re merely figuring it all out, just like we are. Using their trauma or truth-telling for a political chess match is incredibly uncomfortable to watch and, most likely, worse for the kids involved.
The kids are influential, impelled onto a pedestal with a hero arc yet often dismissed for their naivety when it matters. Enough.
America loves a hero, a real person FOR the people BY the people. However, we’re omitting a crucial step into this hero origin story. Claudia Conway (also Greta Thunberg and the Parkland advocates, and plenty more) do not want to be heroes.
They’re pleading with the adults in charge to do their actual jobs. The ones they’re paid to do to change things for the better, not drill it into the ground with hidden agendas for profit. So no matter how much we want a hail mary pass to save America from itself, it’s not at the hands of a fifteen-year-old; she deserves better than that. Therefore, Claudia Conway isn’t a leader or even the face of the resistance; she won’t save America from its own downfall.
