Who is Kamala Harris?

Mora Surijon
Nov 4, 2024
7 min read

Kamala Harris, the current Vice President of the United States and a 2024 presidential candidate, has already cemented her place in history. At 59 years old, she is the first Black woman, as well as the first person of South Asian descent, to hold the vice presidency. If she were to win the upcoming presidential election, she would become the first female president in U.S. history. Her personal and professional journey is one that intertwines resilience, historical significance, and a deep commitment to justice.

Family Story: A Legacy of Activism

Harris’s story begins with her parents, who are both immigrants. Her mother, Shyamala Gopalan, came to the U.S. from India in the early 1960s, while her father, Donald Harris, is a Stanford professor of Jamaican descent. Growing up in the politically charged environment of Oakland, California, during the Black Power movement, Harris was no stranger to activism. She recalls being taken to protests as a baby, carried in a stroller by her parents. But her family’s political legacy stretches back even further—to India, where her grandfather was involved in the fight for independence from British rule, and her grandmother advocated for women’s access to birth control. This legacy of activism and social justice set the stage for Harris’s own political ambitions.

Education

Harris’s journey in education reflects her family story as well. She attended Howard University, a historically Black university in Washington, D.C., known as the “Black Mecca” for its role in educating African American elites. At Howard, she studied Political Science and Economics and joined Alpha Kappa Alpha, the oldest Greek-letter sorority established by African American college women. This educational foundation not only provided Harris with academic rigor but also firmly established her in the Black intellectual tradition and community. Despite this; Kamala Harris has faced criticism not only from Donald Trump, who accused her of "becoming black" and suggested she previously identified primarily as Indian, but also from other Republicans who have dismissed her as an "inclusion hire," questioning her qualifications and authority.

Professional Career: From Prosecutor to Vice President

2003-2016: A Tough-on-Crime Prosecutor

After completing her law degree, Harris embarked on a legal career that saw her rise quickly through the ranks. In 2003, she was elected District Attorney of San Francisco, a position she held until 2011. Following this, she served as Attorney General of California from 2011 to 2016. During these years, Harris gained a reputation as a tough-on-crime prosecutor, a stance that would be a source of criticism in later years. However, this behavior should also be seen within the broader context of the law-and-order politics of the 1990s and 2000s, one in which drug policies in the U.S. were punitive and hardline approaches towards crime were encouraged.

Journalists often found it challenging to pin her down on specific issues during this time. As a prosecutor, Harris argued that her role required neutrality, which led to her often avoid clear stances on contentious topics, such as healthcare or marijuana legalization. This ambiguity persisted even as she launched her senatorial campaign with slogans like “smart on crime” (the title of her book) and the “Back on Track” program to avoid recidivism and promote social reintegration of criminals.

2016-2021: Her Senate years

In 2016, Harris was elected as a U.S. Senator from California, a role she held until becoming Vice President in 2021. Her time in the Senate was marked by her incisive and often uncomfortable questioning of Trump administration officials, which earned her national recognition beyond California. Although not a trailblazer in the traditional sense, she became the Democratic Party’s chief cross-examiner in the Senate. Several of her confrontations with Trump’s appointees went viral, solidifying her reputation as a formidable opponent of the administration and sparking calls for her to run for president.

2021-2024: Vice Presidency

Harris’s political fortunes changed when Joe Biden selected her as his running mate in 2020, a decision made amidst the George Floyd protests, the Black Lives Matter social explosion and a national reckoning on race. Sworn in as Vice President in January 2021, Harris became the first woman to hold toffice. Her tenure has been marked by her handling of some of the most politically fraught issues, often those the administration preferred to keep at arm’s length. One of her most challenging assignments was addressing the “root causes” of undocumented immigration to the U.S. and leading diplomatic relations with Mexico and Central American countries—an area outside her primary expertise.

Her stance on immigration reform, once a central part of her platform, became a point of contention when she delivered a controversial “do not come to the U.S.” speech in El Salvador. Despite her warnings, immigration numbers remained high, which led to criticism of Harris for being ineffective in addressing the issue. A subsequent TV interview, in which she admitted to not having visited the southern border, further damaged her image, leading her to retreat somewhat from the public spotlight.

However, her image was "saved" by the issue of abortion, a topic on which she could establish herself as an authority and feel more comfortable than Biden, given her greater expertise in reproductive rights. Suddenly, Kamala Harris found her role in the Biden Administration. The Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade, which allowed states to ban abortion, prompted a public response from Harris. The Vice President campaigned extensively on this issue. Ever since, we have seen her in more comfortable settings, making herself more visible in forums that align more closely with her beliefs, such as climate, education, and small businesses.

2024: Can She Beat Trump?

As the 2024 presidential election approaches, Harris faces the most significant challenge of her career: replacing Joe Biden as the presidential candidate just three months before the election, despite not being the victor in the Democratic primaries. Although her voice wasn't strongly heard during her vice presidency (likely due to the nature of the role), she has shown a more assertive and firm profile since announcing her latest candidacy. With a progressive yet moderate stance, she adopted the rally slogan, "We are not going back," during a speech at a public school in Wisconsin.

But it takes a cultural phenomenon to overcome a cultural phenomenon, so the question remains, can Harris beat Trump? While Trump currently leads in the polls, the margin is slim. Several factors contribute to his lead, including growing concerns about Joe Biden’s competence and fitness for office, exacerbated by a series of public missteps. The presidential debate between Biden and Trump was a clear victory for Trump, deepening fears about Biden’s ability to continue in the role. Moreover, Trump’s campaign received a boost following an assassination attempt at a rally in July, which left him with a wound on his right ear. His defiant response, as reported by the New York Times, has only strengthened his resolve and emboldened his supporters. The Republican convention in Milwaukee further solidified his backing, creating a formidable challenge for Harris.

However, Harris’s campaign has also shown signs of strength. Within the first 36 hours of her candidacy announcement, she raised a record-breaking $100 million, signaling strong support. Her age, at 59, contrasts sharply with Trump’s, making her now the younger candidate, a difference that completely neutralizes one of the primary Republican attacks—Biden’s age and perceived incompetence.

Harris’s appeal to younger voters and women, particularly on issues like reproductive rights, also gives her a significant advantage. While being a woman does not automatically guarantee her the female vote—Trump defeated Hillary Clinton, after all—Harris’s stance on abortion and reproductive rights could be a decisive factor. Trump’s appointment of justices who overturned Roe v. Wade has led to extreme bans on abortion, which could drive more women voters, even those who are traditionally Republican, to Harris’s side. Furthermore, Harris has the potential to re-energize the Black voter demographic, which is crucial for any Democratic victory. While Democrats cannot rely solely on Black voters to win, they cannot afford to lose their support.

Since his last nomination, Trump has faced violent unrest at the Capitol (commonly known as "January 6th"), an impeachment, four indictments, and a criminal conviction. Harris is well aware of this and has challenged him with statements like, “I’ll proudly put my record against his any day of the week.” She has also said that in her long career as a prosecutor, she has taken on perpetrators of all kinds: "Predators who abused women, fraudsters who ripped off consumers, cheaters who broke the rules for their own gain. So hear me when I say, I know Donald Trump’s type." In reputational terms, the contrast between her background as a former prosecutor and Trump’s status as a convicted felon is something that will definitely benefit Harris, and she is using it to her advantage.

In conclusion, while the race remains tight and Trump’s position is formidable, Kamala Harris brings a unique combination of experience, resilience, and appeal to key demographics that could ultimately lead her to victory in November. Whether this will be enough to overcome Trump’s stronghold remains to be seen, but Harris is undoubtedly prepared for the fight.

Who is Kamala Harris?

References

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