[ [link removed] ]Ayanna Pressley for Congress
When I
first met Kamala Harris, I realized the clear similarities between our
personal stories. Not only the challenges we faced as Black women in
politics, but also the overlaps in our upbringing, the strength our
mothers gave us, and our shared experience building beautiful blended
families. We both know what it means to become a “first,” to be both
invisible and highly visible at the same time, and the responsibility of
writing the blueprint for someone else’s survival.
So many people in America see themselves in Kamala’s story. She is someone
who keeps the people closest to the pain closest to the power. For that
reason and so many others, she is uniquely and exceptionally qualified to
be the next President of the United States. In an op-ed for Marie Claire,
I wrote about our shared experience, the unprecedented stakes in this
election, and the more just world we are building together.
Please read my piece below. [ [link removed] ]And if you’re able to today, please pitch
in $25 or
anything you can to support my campaign and help ensure I can fight like
hell to elect Kamala Harris on behalf of everyone who has ever been left
out and left behind.
Onward,
Ayanna
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The Power and Promise of Kamala Harris
By Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley
August 14, 2024
I speak often about what it means to be a Black woman in elected office,
representing multiple marginalized identities that are both highly visible
and invisible at the same time. That’s the reality when you break
hundred-year concrete ceilings and become a “first.”
The fact that Kamala Harris is where she is now says everything. I have no
doubt that, growing up, she was required to be twice as good for half the
credit. Time and time again, she has broken barriers, made history, and
led with strength and humanity. She is uniquely and exceptionally
qualified to be the next President of the United States of America.
Picturing her on the dais, accepting the Democratic nomination, poised to
become the first woman, first Black woman, and first Indian American
President of the United States—it’s emotional for me.
It’s emotional because it's personal. Her story is the story of millions
in America. We see ourselves reflected in her.
Like Kamala, I was raised by a strong woman who taught me the words of
Shirley Chisholm and Toni Morrison.
Like Kamala, I went to my first protests and community meetings in a
stroller.
She and I have faced many of the same challenges and roadblocks. As women
making our way in politics, we've been met with biases and misogynoir. We
know what it's like for your victories to be qualified as circumstance and
your stumbles to be credited to your character.
Like Kamala, I was blessed to meet the love of my life and become a bonus
mom (“Momala” in her case), building a beautiful, blended family.
She made history as the first woman of color to serve as Attorney General
of California and the second Black woman in the U.S. Senate. I made
history as the first Black woman to serve Massachusetts in Congress.
Like Kamala, my life and career have been defined by a fierce commitment
to public service and an abiding belief in government as a force for good.
And like Kamala, I have been many “firsts,” writing the blueprint for
someone else’s survival—but I vow to never be the last.
It’s no surprise that Republicans have already sought to weaponize her
identity against her, to dub her as “the DEI candidate.” It’s an easy
attack—and a predictable one. Bigotry and dog whistles like these are the
tired playbook of a party whose policies have become dangerous and deeply
unpopular.
Make no mistake: Identity matters and representation is powerful. Kamala
is a woman of color. A loving Momala. Maya’s sister and Doug’s wife. She
is also a former Attorney General. A scholar. A history-making U.S.
Senator. And the sitting Vice President. She is the first one in the room
and the last one at the table when important decisions are made. So let’s
be clear: “Representation” is just one of many reasons Vice President
Harris is the most qualified person for this job and this moment.
In a time when reproductive rights are diminishing daily, Kamala has been
a powerful champion and effective messenger for abortion justice, IVF, and
birth control. As a leading voice on student debt cancellation, I say
sincerely that Kamala has been an engaged and responsive partner. We’ve
worked together on efforts to address the maternal health crisis, advance
housing justice, demand paid family leave, and protect voting rights.
There has been a seismic shift in the presidential election. Kamala is
officially the Democratic nominee. And in picking Minnesota Governor Tim
Walz as her running mate—an educator, champion for workers, and defender
of reproductive freedom—Kamala once again demonstrated her leadership, her
judgment, and her commitment to making progress for our communities.
Candidates are human, and they must learn in public. As an elected
official, I know our strength lies in being responsive and accountable.
Kamala is committed to earning the trust of voters who have felt unseen
and unheard by status quo politics.
The stakes in this election couldn’t be clearer. And Vice President Harris
has given us reason to hope—a deep and abiding hope that is less about
wishing and more about working.
Despite their empty, morally bankrupt promises of unity, Donald Trump and
Republicans have made their agenda clear: to attack our most basic rights
and freedoms.
In Donald Trump’s America, women reading this article today, from
Massachusetts to Mississippi, could be forced to carry an unwanted
pregnancy to term—even one caused by rape or incest. Kamala is a champion
for abortion justice.
In Donald Trump’s America, housing prices would continue to skyrocket
while people are thrown in jail for being unhoused. Kamala will continue
working to end homelessness.
In Donald Trump’s America, fossil fuel companies would thrive while our
babies suffer in cities that are too hot and ill-equipped to protect our
most vulnerable from climate change. Kamala is a champion for the Green
New Deal and would be the most strident environmental justice President in
history.
We have the opportunity to embrace a politics rooted in community, equity,
and dignity. To leave our children and grandchildren a better world than
we inherited.
There are less than three months until Election Day. With Vice President
Harris at the top of the ticket—as a tribute to my departed mother, for
the future of my teenage daughter, and on behalf of everyone who has ever
been left out and left behind—I will fight like hell for a better future.
Let’s go.
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