It's about that time in the election cycle where the candidates have nearly finished surfacing. It's crazy that out of all these names, most of which the majority of us have never heard before, one of them is going to be our next president. So who are these people? Who should we pay attention to and most importantly, how do we choose who gets our vote? Well although I can't answer all of those questions, I can at least provide a little information on the Democratic candidate who I find most unique and intriguing.
Kamala Harris is a 54-year-old woman, mother, wife, and politician of Jamaican and Indian descent. She is currently one of California's senators. Kamala whose name comes from the Sanscrit word for lotus flower was raised in California until age 12 when she moved to Toronto. Her public image thus far has been powerful. She is part of the empowering group of minority women along with names like Alessandra Ocasio Ortez that fight for justice in the Senate. She is kind, and compassionate, as well as firey and passionate which are qualities I admire in a leader.
According to her Wikipedia page after graduating from high school in Quebec, Harris went on to graduate from Howard University with a Political Science and Economics degree. She then moved to California where she got her J.D. from the Hastings College of Law. Harris served as District Attorney and later as Attorney General. As D.A. she created the Back On Track Program that helps to re-integrate offenders of certain crimes into society. Harris' approach to attorney general countered that of tough on crime as shown through the title of her book "Smart on Crime: A Career Prosecutor's Plan to Make Us Safer." Now, Harris serves as California's senator and a Presidential Candidate running on a strong platform.
The aforementioned article then went on to describe how Harris was a strong proponent of the DREAM Act and had a large role in its passing. Some of her main issues include supporting the legalization of recreational and medical Marijuana use and lowering taxes on everyone but the 1%. Part of her "for the people" campaign is that she doesn't accept donations from PACS! If you're interested in learning even more about her feel free to go to her website by googling Kamala Harris or following her twitter (@kamalaharris) that has lots of good updates and policy stances.
I for one am excited to see how she does because it's about time we have a woman in office, not to mention a woman of color. It's time for the president to have a new perspective and one that doesn't come from a place of white male privilege.
