CELEBRATING THE QUEEN WHO IS KAMALA HARRIS

BLACK WOMEN ARE LEVELLING UP – AGAIN.

For a moment there, I thought it was too late, two weeks later, to write about the explosive USA presidential election results. I thought, I have missed a trick, a moment in time, and berated myself for not having my finger on the pulse, for this black culture section.

Even though, I lived and breathed that weekend with real tension, tears, worry AND then victory, happiness, positivity, and inspiration.

But then I gave myself a hypothetical slap around the face and realised ‘hold on a bloody moment’. I feel the same about this, as I do about black history month – this is not just for a moment in time, day, or month. We are black every single day. The impact of this is huge and historical, particularly having the first Black and South Asian American to be elected vice president! It should not be forgotten or dismissed over a weekend, where people go back to the everyday lives and forget our struggle and especially not following the toxic, racist stupid four-year presidency of hell, that was Donald Trump.

And the truth of the matter is, that this election result is amazing and exactly what the entire world needed but let us be realistic. It has only just begun. The new four-year term for Kamala Harris and Joe Biden (see what I did there – Kamala in my eyes is the true hero!) is the start of a brand-new horizon.

But we should not be naïve, we need to recognise that this is the beginning and there is a lot of work to do. To renew the confidence of almost half of America. The fact that Trump still gained so many votes felt like a failure, despite the success, because the reality of the racism there, hit home hard.

All those people (Karen’s!!!) who voted for Trump still exist. Daily living is still hard for those living in America, amongst an overarching racist society.

Seeing Van Jones crying on CNN, brought a lot of us to our knees, especially his words said through shallow breaths and broken tears ‘It’s easier to be a parent this morning’. Those were real tears, of a grown man who really knows what a long way black people and those of ethnic backgrounds must go in the struggle for equality and tears of relief for his family, and sheer relief  that Trump has finally been ousted. 

But I do want to focus on the positive. Kamala!!! Kamala Harris. The women that speaks to the masses. When I hear that articulate, sensible, gorgeous black women speak, I get goosebumps. And mainly for everything she stands for. I listened to her vice presidential acceptance speech with tears streaming down my face, as she spoke her truth – ‘There is no vaccine for racism, we’ve got to do the work for George Floyd, for Breonna Taylor and for the lives of too many others’. Here we have the first Black and South Asian American to be elected vice president and she is a call to action. A force.

If you have not witnessed her taking down a pro-gun activist, with words that hit every, single, emotion. Please google it. She slayed that boy and not only that, but she also spoke to her affirmative action plan.

As the first woman to be elected vice president in the United States she also made sure she has spoken to black women, women and to aspirational girls. In her speech she paid tribute to them all.

Black women – she spoke to their struggle for equality when she said they are “too often overlooked, but so often prove that they are the backbone of our democracy”.

Women – I reflect on their struggle, their determination and the strength of their vision, to see what can be, unburdened by what has been,” she said. “I stand on their shoulders”

Girls – ‘While I may be the first woman in this office, I will not be the last, because every little girl watching tonight sees that this is a country of possibilities’.

I have all the words and tears of joy for Kamala Harris. She is an icon in my eyes and as a lover of music, I must admit my heart skipped a beat when I saw her dancing to Cardi B’s ‘I Like It’. She has got some moves too! It was also demonstrative of her as a person, normal and kind and who is a human.

And as accolades go let us not forget Stacey Abrams – Stacey Yvonne Abrams is an American politician, lawyer, voting rights activist, and author who served in the Georgia House of Representatives from 2007 to 2017 – and what a powerful trailblazer she is. She helped bring home the election result by campaigning and spearheading the registration of 800,000 NEW voters in Georgia. That is black woman magic right there.

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