Nobody likes a quitter.

So why is everyone calling on Sen. Hillary Clinton to give up her pursuit of the Democratic nomination?

Of course, we must take into account that Clinton’s opponent, Barack Obama, is winning the popular vote and is gaining steadily on her superdelegate numbers.

Some see this as a sign that Clinton’s goal of becoming our nation’s first female president may not be realized.

It is also understandable that her stay in the race could hinder the Democratic Party in its preparation for battling John McCain in the more significant contest for the White House.

However, whether likely or improbable, this notion remains only a possibility and not a certainty.

“The game’s not over ‘til it’s over,” says Froma Harrop of the National Ledger Web site. “And it’s not over until Clinton says it is – or the convention chooses someone.”

With that being said, Clinton should keep campaigning as long as she truly feels that she has a chance to succeed. To surrender could be discouraging to the morale of members of the female gender for reasons that go far beyond politics.

Now don’t get me wrong. In no way should the self-worth of women everywhere lie within the fate of a single individual’s political career. However, taking lessons from our own history and culture, we can see the importance of Clinton’s toughness and what it means to our society.

Throughout history, men have had the upper hand over women, dominating nearly every aspect of life. One doesn’t have to be a feminist to acknowledge the trials and tribulations that women have had to endure just to be recognized under the law as citizens of equal class to men.

Though, as a nation, we have matured politically, we should know that we are still somewhat plagued with the mindset that women are weaker and less resilient than men.

“The same campaign they once celebrated as a sign of tremendous progress – with its promise of the first female president in the nation’s history – has instead reinforced their impressions of gender inequity,” said Eli Saslow of the Web site The Spec.

I have no doubt that, if she loses, she will still continue to do her part in helping the Democratic Party. In that, her responsibilities as a politician will be fulfilled.

As a woman in America, though, I feel she has a second responsibility to stay in this race because it will strengthen the perception of women as being able to battle it out until the end.

Of course, plenty of women possess this quality and plenty of men do not. Yet, the general conception does not reflect that reality, but instead a stereotype that favors men.

Clinton must know that all her accomplishments up until now have already set an exceptional precedent for women in this country, and the reception of prospective female leaders of the future could be dependent on the very decisions she makes now, win or lose.

She owes it to every woman in the past who never had the opportunity to reach such heights to finish what she starts. No one who ever changed the course of the human experience did it with ease.

There is no embarrassment in losing, nor is there any embarrassment in quitting when there’s virtually no way for you to win. However, as much as we have attached ourselves to Senator Obama’s message of hope, it would be hypocritical for any Obama supporter, including myself, to assume that his opponent should give up hope and quit.

That is an irony too great to ignore.

We must inhabit the mindset that even when the odds are stacked against her, a woman – or anyone for that matter – can successfully and independently rise to the occasion and taste victory.

That’s what America is all about, isn’t it?