Since Joe Biden dropped out of the race for the US presidency, I have deliberately avoided writing too much about Kamala Harris. Yet the first woman—a black and South Asian woman to boot—could soon be in office for one of the most important jobs in the world. This should be a topic that interests me, right? The truth is, I didn’t really know where to start. Because it is a puzzle.
On the one hand, I remember very well the emotion that overwhelmed me in November 2008, when Barack Obama was elected. The emotion took me by surprise — and it is very possible that I will still be shaken by my own reaction if Kamala Harris wins this year. Until the last minute, I preferred to believe that the election of a black president was impossible: I understand in hindsight that this was a way of protecting myself. The watchword of 2008 was ” hope “, “hope.” We have since seen what the Obama presidency has achieved – and what it has not achieved. We have also seen the backlash it has caused within reactionary America. It is not just me who has aged: many of us no longer have the candor of 2008.
On the other hand, the role of the United States on the international stage has not been so prominent since the Bush era. From the outside, it is difficult not to see Kamala Harris first as the vice president and potential American president who continues to unconditionally supply weapons to Benjamin Netanyahu’s government. Weapons that are used to crush Gaza and, now, presumably to prepare a ground invasion of Lebanon.
Certainly, in M’s remarksme Harris, we note a slightly more empathetic tone than Joe Biden towards the victims of American bombs. Are we timidly preparing a change of course after a possible swearing-in at the beginning of January? How much more damage could be done in Gaza and Lebanon by then?
I have been putting off making any substantive comments about Kamala Harris because — as you will have gathered in recent weeks — I first and foremost ardently hope that Donald Trump will lose.
If one cares about the fate of the victims of American weapons, one seizes a small chance that a political vision of the Middle East that is just a little more aware of basic humanitarian realities will be put in place, rather than an eminently predictable catastrophe. In this sense, the renewed energy in the Democratic campaign since Joe Biden’s withdrawal is good news.
I think my discomfort comes more from the idea of automatically making Kamala Harris a role model for little girls around the world — without considering what she is politically complicit in, and what she is co-responsible for.
I totally understand the impact of the lack of role models for kids, especially those from underrepresented communities in a range of fields. There is a reflex, especially as a parent, to point to anyone who is “successful” and say, “See, you too can aspire to these positions. The world is open to you.”
That said, there is this very common idea in African-American culture: “ We are our ancestors’ wildest dreams » (“We are the wildest dreams of our ancestors”). I sincerely wonder if, when our ancestors dreamed of our freedom, they wished that their descendants would also have the “opportunity”, the “chance” to aspire to the role of chief supplier of weapons used to kill tens of thousands of children.
As I write this, I think of the young girls who can identify with Kamala Harris and the messages that our generation is sending her. I know that simply being able to access certain positions has long been an insurmountable symbolic barrier. I wish, I hope that we are now able to deliver a slightly more complex message to future generations.
Dear young women waiting to see if the first woman—black and South Asian to boot—will become president of the United States, I wish you access to all the role models you deserve. I wish you the ability to realize your dreams and ambitions. I wish that being a woman will be a gift to you, and no longer a burden, in achieving your dreams.
I also hope that you never feel the need to prove that a woman is capable of holding a position or another. I hope that your generation takes her worth for granted, and makes decisions based on what is good for her, rather than to demonstrate something to others.
I would also like you to know that power for power’s sake is not an end in itself. It can be used to heal as well as to hurt. And when we reach certain positions without being well surrounded, we may not have complete control over how we will be made to use this power.
There are many gilded cages in this world. Seemingly prestigious positions that can extinguish your voice and your real influence. I hope that you will be surrounded by advisors who will help you recognize them and determine, on a case-by-case basis, whether you will be the one influencing an institution or whether the institution will be using you.
First of all, I want you to know the value of your integrity. It is by protecting your integrity that you can have an impact in the different roles you occupy. And when it is materially possible to prioritize your integrity, it becomes your guide. Integrity closes the doors that were not made for you and shows you the way to your true place.
If Kamala Harris becomes president, I hope that in the decisions she will have to make quickly and which will impact millions of human lives, she will always remember her integrity.