Kamala recalls Indian roots, outlines vision in acceptance speech

Kamala Harris has officially become the first black woman to be a major party’s vice presidential nominee. She made history on Wednesday (August 19) night (Thursday in India) as the first black and South Asian woman to accept the Democrats’ vice-presidential nomination, promising to be a champion for the voiceless and forgotten Americans struggling amid the Covid-19 pandemic and serious economic woes.

Harris’ formal nomination came on the third night of the Democratic Party’s National Convention. Introducing herself as the daughter of an Indian Jamaican immigrants, Harris officially joined the party’s presidential ticket alongside presidential candidate Joe Biden.

In one of her most significant speeches, she described her vision of America “as a beloved community – where all are welcome”. Citing the example of her mother who she said taught her daughters to “be conscious and compassionate about the struggles of all people” and to believe that “the fight for justice is a shared responsibility.” Harris noted that was why she became a prosecutor who tried to reform the criminal justice system from within.

Though Americans may not “agree on every detail,” they are “united by the fundamental belief that every human being is of infinite worth, deserving of compassion, dignity and respect,” she said.

With the United State’s political landscape marred by racism and inequality, the country needs a President who will act as a unifier and bring people together, she said. Harris also criticized President Donald Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, calling him a “President who turns tragedies into political weapons”.

Before Harris addressed the American voters who had tuned in to virtually witness the penultimate night of the convention, she was introduced by her sister Maya Harris, niece Meena Harris and stepdaughter Ella Emhoff.

Harris began her address by paying tribute to the suffragettes who fought for women’s equality and the right to vote as well as the women and men who fought for equality and justice, paving the way for her nomination. “That I am here tonight is a testament to the dedication of generations before me,” she said.

Harris shared her mother’s story, outlining how she moved to the US from India at the age of 19, met Harris’ father at a civil rights march in the 1960s, and raised two children on her own after separating from her husband.

“There’s another woman, whose name isn’t known, whose story isn’t shared. Another woman whose shoulders I stand on. And that’s my mother — Shyamala Gopalan Harris,” she said. “Like so many mothers, she worked around the clock to make it work, packing lunches before we woke up, and paying bills after we went to bed, helping us with homework at the kitchen table and shuttling us to church for choir practice,” she said.

“A country where we look out for one another, where we rise and fall as one, where we face our challenges, and celebrate our triumphs together… today… that country feels distant,” she explained. “I have a vision of our nation as a Beloved Community — where all are welcome, no matter what we look like, where we come from, or who we love.”

“Donald Trump’s failure of leadership has cost lives and livelihoods,” she said. “If you’re a parent struggling with your child’s remote learning, or you’re a teacher struggling on the other side of that screen, you know that what we’re doing right now isn’t working,” said Harris.

Harris went on to extol the virtues of former Vice-President Joe Biden. The country needs a president who will bring people together instead of dividing them further, she said. “We must elect Joe Biden.”

She recalled her personal relationship with Biden — remembering his days in the office as Vice-President, and the relationship she shared with his son Beau Biden. When Harris was Attorney General of California, Beau was her counterpart in Delaware.

Harris urged American voters to cast their vote on polling day, knowing that they have a shot at changing the course of history. She called on the citizens of America to fight for hope with confidence and conviction for the America they envision.