Dear John,

Tomorrow, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will be sworn into office as our next president and vice president. I’m approaching the day with a huge mix of emotions.

There is true joy in the history about to be made —we’ve waited SO long for a woman, a Black woman, a South Asian woman, to ascend to these heights. I’ll be watching tomorrow wearing my Chucks and pearls, excited that little girls around the country will regularly see Madame Vice President leading. It will change what they know to be possible.
And there is grief, fear, and anger, because tomorrow should be an unbridled celebration of her achievements and of the achievements of the organizers and activists (we see you, Georgia!) who have given so much over the last few years to keep pushing us toward a better future.
But instead, I write this from my home in D.C., where we’re still reeling from the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6—an act that was the culmination of years of racist and incendiary lies by Trump and many members of Congress, who tried to subvert the will of the people and our very democracy. And I write this from a community that has been militarized and locked down in order prevent further violence by these white supremacist insurrectionists.
This inauguration was already going to be like none other because of the COVID-19 pandemic. People will not be gathering from around the country, pouring into Washington, D.C., to see the inauguration as they have in years past. COVID has meant we don’t gather in the same way at all. But tonight, a national memorial along the National Mall and in cities around the country will shine a light on and honor the nearly 400,000 lives we’ve lost this year.
If this last year has taught us anything, it’s that we cannot subsist on anger alone. And so I am still cultivating my hope and joy.
I am heartened to know that President Biden will be backed by Vice President Harris, whose experience as a biracial Black and Indian woman should signal the end of tolerance for an all-white, all-male leadership in any institution. And as this administration works with a new Congress, they will hear the voices of more women than ever—Black, brown, and immigrant women, Indigenous women, women who are immigrants and refugees, queer women, women who served their country in the armed forces and women who served their communities by standing against racist police violence. It’s a hopeful sign that the racial and gender biases of our society will be tackled with the counsel of a coalition of underheard leaders from underserved communities.
And I have hope because I know that my colleagues at the Law Center, and activists and supporters like you, are in this for the long haul.
The work ahead will not be easy. We will push for true COVID relief and recovery, for child care funding, for equal pay, for abortion access, for health care for all, free from discrimination. We will make sure women can go to work and girls can go to school without harassment. We will redirect school attention away from outdated dress codes and school resource officers that lead to unfair discipline and into the counselors and support that allow Black and Latina girls to thrive. We will undo the Trump administration’s attacks on our civil rights, and we will use the law to further enshrine our right to live and work with safety and dignity.
It’s a lot. (This year has been a lot, all 19 days of it so far!)
But we’re in it together. And we’re not going back.
I hope you can find joy this week and that you’re safe and able to take care of yourself and get the rest you need. I’ll see you on the other side.
In solidarity, and hope and fear and anger and joy,
Fatima
she/her/hers
President & CEO
National Women's Law Center
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