My mother served in the Navy as a WAVE before women were allowed to be called sailors and fought to stay in despite getting married. She was eventually forced out of the service due to pregnancy, much to her dismay.
While in the Navy myself I kept a picture of her with me as well as one of my father (who also served). I was the 8th woman assigned a berth on a combatant ship, having served 4 years previously on a ship designated as "unusually arduous sea duty" and having had proven myself as a master helmsman and rising from E-1 to E-5 (I was due for a shore tour and chose to return to the sea).
I know what it means to fight for equality, what it's like having to do things 150% better than the competition just to look equal, having to hike across the entire ship to one of the 2 female heads (bathrooms) I was allowed to use on the ship while on watch in the middle of the night (going up and down ladders while having to pee sucks, regardless of time of day).
I voted for Obama. I do not consider myself a traitor to my gender. I also don't feel as if I "peed on anyone's torch". My mother raised me to think independently, to evaluate my options and to make choices based on what I believe, what I think and what I feel. My mother has chosen to support McCain. Neither of us felt inclined to support Clinton just because she was a woman.