Elizabeth Edwards: The Death of a Courageous Wife

Condolences from Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, CNN headlines, hundreds of support messages on Facebook, etc. An array of tributes has befallen Elizabeth Edwards on Tuesday night after the announcement of her death. The wife of John Edwards, candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2004 and 2008, succumbed to cancer after a 6 year battle against the disease. The emotion aroused by her death is a tribute to both her role as a behind-the-scenes politician and the many tragedies that have made this 61-year old lawyer a tabloid fixture and a public figure, whose aura sometimes overshadowed that of her husband.

Politically speaking, Elizabeth Edwards was one of her husband’s most influential advisers, playing a large role in his two races for the Democratic nomination for the White House. Elizabeth examined John’s campaign videos, read his speeches and participated in strategic discussions. Strict, she did not hesitate to sack her husband’s advisers whom she found incompetent. Her fight against cancer had also made her a fierce defender of Obama’s health care reform, including testifying before Congress. The White House resident was honored on Tuesday as “a tenacious advocate for fixing our health care system and fighting poverty.” “Through all that she endured, Elizabeth revealed a kind of fortitude and grace that will long remain a source of inspiration,” said the American president.

Death of a Child and Cancer

Elizabeth Edwards forged her own popularity in spite of herself. The lawyer and North Carolina senator experienced their first tragedy when their youngest son Wade, 16 years old, was killed in a 1996 car accident. His death plunged the Edwards’ into depression. Like Elizabeth, John decided to change his life. John Edwards, a renowned lawyer specializing in cases involving medical malpractice, went into politics. Elizabeth, after receiving hormone treatment, gave birth to two more children. The Edwards’ learned the day after the Democrats defeat against Bush in 2004 — John Edwards was John Kerry’s running mate — that Elizabeth was suffering from breast cancer. The cancer entered into remission in 2006, but in 2007 the disease reappeared. The lawyer, who described her struggle in a number one best seller, was diagnosed with stage IV cancer that had spread to her lungs and ribs.

The tumor was treatable but not curable, announced the couple, who would not renounce the Democratic primary against Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. The return of the disease made Elizabeth Edwards “a fascinating character,” noted the New York Times. To the chagrin of John’s advisers, who think the lawyer is overshadowing the former senator. Crowds assail her during meetings. “You’re my angel, my idol,”* said a Democratic supporter suffering from cancer himself. Following her death, many newspapers also noted that Elizabeth Edwards, full of vitality and determination, will be especially remembered for the example she gave to cancer patients. “We can look at her courage and tell ourselves that we too can do it,”* a leader of a patient support group told AP.

She Chose to Remain Silent about Her Husband’s Affair

Elizabeth Edwards’ ultimate test was her husband’s infidelity with a documentary filmmaker. The former senator admitted his affair to his wife and swore the short-lived affair occurred during Elizabeth’s remission in 2006. Elizabeth forgave [him], and the couple displayed a united front at the 2008 primary. The silence was not always understood by Democrats who accused the couple of hiding a truth that would have been explosive for the party’s return to power if Edwards had won the nomination or had been named Obama’s running mate.

John Edwards’ career and marriage were completely shattered when a tabloid newspaper revealed that a baby girl was born of the affair. Elizabeth Edwards, realizing that she was more deceived than she had thought, called for a separation in early 2010. The lawyer, who died surrounded by her children and John, announced Monday that doctors had advised against any further treatment, due to metastases affecting her liver. “The days of our lives, for all of us, are numbered. We know that. And yes, there are certainly times when we aren’t able to muster as much strength and patience as we would like. It’s called being human. But I have found that in the simple act of living with hope, and in the daily effort to have a positive impact in the world, the days I do have are made all the more meaningful and precious. And for that I am grateful,” she wrote on Facebook, 24 hours before her death.