History was made yesterday when Vice President Joe Biden picked Senator Kamala Harris as his Vice Presidential running mate. A groundbreaking moment indeed as Senator Harris will be the first African American woman and the first Indian American to be nominated on a major party presidential ticket in U.S. history!
This nomination is just the latest trailblazing step in Senator Harris career. She was first elected as the District Attorney of San Francisco in 2003 becoming California’s first African American and Indian American D.A. In 2010 she created history again by being the first woman and Indian American elected Attorney General of CA. And in 2016, she became the first Indian American senator and only the second African American female senator.
Early in life, young Kamala and her sister Maya grew up in a house filled with music by black American artists, nurtured by her Indian mother Shyamala, and her jazz-loving Jamaican father, Donald who taught economics at Stanford University. Her parents met and fell in love at Berkeley while participating in the civil rights movement – a fact that Sen. Harris is immensely proud of. In her words she, "grew up embracing her Indian culture, but living a proudly African-American life." Kamala was raised primarily by her mother, a cancer researcher and a civil rights activist, who made sure her girls were aware of their backgrounds. In 2014, Kamala married Douglas Emhoff, a lawyer and wasted no time embracing and integrating his Jewish heritage into her family’s diverse cultural tapestry.
As an elected official, Senator Harris has become a prominent voice in the push for racial justice and police reform and is often described as reform-minded with a progressive approach.
In recent years many Indian Americans have made their mark on politics with many appointed to the judiciary, major regulatory agencies, also entering electoral politics from local elections to state legislatures, Congress and governorships. Now an Indian American woman will be a major party candidate for Vice-President and therefore a role model to future generations of Indian Americans seeking a career in public service.
Democratic Party activist Shekar Narasimhan has described her candidacy as "seismic" for the Indian American community. We agree. Whatever your political affiliation, this is a landmark moment for Indian Americans and NIAM extends our heartiest congratulations to Senator Kamala Harris!
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