On Wednesday night, Kamala inspired Americans and made history with her words at the Democratic National Convention. Harris had all eyes on her as this was the first time we saw her giving a speech since joining Joe Biden in his race for the White House as his vice president pick. She spoke on issues that many Americans have been seeking answers to from politicians. 

Kamala Harris is our country’s first Black and Asian American candidate for vice president of the United States. She has served as the District Attorney of San Francisco, Attorney General of California, and holds a seat in the Senate for the state of California. 

Harris has done work for the American people in each of these positions by fighting for public safety, consumer protection, criminal justice reform, LGBTQ+ rights, and achieved change through her reform efforts.

As November approaches, Americans are looking to Kamala Harris as hope during unprecedented times and as anxiety builds towards how the next four years will look like for American life. 

“We are a nation that’s grieving—grieving the loss of life, the loss of jobs, the loss of opportunities, the loss of normalcy. And yes, the loss of certainty,” stated Harris. 

Kamala is a candidate that understands the complexity of the issues coming to light in America amongst the pandemic and greater exposure of police brutality. She iterated, “And while this virus touches us all, let’s be honest- it is not an equal opportunity offender. Black, Latino and Indigenous people are suffering and dying disproportionately,” said Harris. 

She continues by saying, “This is not a coincidence. It is the effect of structural racism. Of inequities in education and technology, health care and housing, job security, and transportation. The injustice in reproductive and maternal health care. In the excessive use of force by police. And in our broader criminal justice system. This virus has no eyes, and yet it knows exactly how we see each other—and how we treat each other. And let’s be clear—there is no vaccine for racism.”

Kamala Harris is precisely what the democratic party needed in a vice-presidential candidate. Next to Biden, Harris brings everything he lacks on the ticket. However, the VP candidate does not have a perfect track record. A New York Times piece on Harris states that she has “faced criticism from progressive activists over her record as a prosecutor, including her push for higher cash bails for certain crimes and for refusing to support independent investigations for police shootings as recently as 2014.” Some see her past actions as an inconsistency with her message that she is now conveying to American people.

As we approach the 2020 election, we must look at this election holistically as well as at each of the candidates. Despite her shortcomings during her time as a prosecutor, Kamala is still the candidate fighting most for what changes Americans are longing for and does not discount the work she has done in fighting for racial justice. No better candidate could have encouraged democratic voters to vote blue in November than a woman who understands the struggles POC face in America and has the intelligence and experience to combat the issues Americans so desperately seeking action on from our politicians in the White House.