She’s been dubbed “the female Obama” and not just because of her skin colour. There’s a purity and energy about Kamala Harris’ courage and resolve that is rare in a political landscape increasingly fuelled by divisiveness. Like Barack Obama she trained as a lawyer, and also like America’s first black President, her passion is to use the law to fight injustice wherever she finds it.
It’s a simple but powerful credo, which is why Kamala Harris is such a relatable figure. “Lawyers have a profound ability and responsibility to be a voice for the vulnerable and the voiceless,” she told her law school’s newspaper, and already this dynamic new Vice President is doing just that.
Kamala’s ethnic background may be unique in her new job, but as the daughter of immigrants she represents a great number of Americans. Add to this her gender – again unique for a VP, but reflecting more than half of the US population – and without even opening her mouth, the 56-year-old Californian is fulfilling her ideal. But while she appreciates the symbolic importance of her migrant parentage, Kamala describes herself as simply “an American” and has spoken about the frustration of politicians having to fit into gender and ethnicity boxes. “I am who I am,” she told a Washington Post reporter in 2019. “I’m good with it. You might need to figure it out, but I’m fine with it.”
As a little girl Kamala was one of thousands of black children who were part of a national desegregation experiment, bussed from their hometowns to achieve an integrated and better education away from segregated schooling. She knew she had to fight to be seen and heard, and you don’t have to look far to see where Kamala learned that steely determination.
Esta historia es de la edición March 2021 de The Australian Women's Weekly.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición March 2021 de The Australian Women's Weekly.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
Hitting a nerve
Regulating the vagus nerve with its links to depression, anxiety, arthritis and diabetes - could aid physical and mental wellbeing.
Take me to the river
With a slew of new schedules and excursions to explore, the latest river cruises promise to give you experiences and sights you won’t see on the ocean.
The last act
When family patriarch Tom Edwards passes away, his children must come together to build his coffin in four days, otherwise they will lose their inheritance. Can they put their sibling rivalry aside?
MEET RUSSIA'S BRAVEST WOMEN
When Alexei Navalny died in a brutal Arctic prison, Vladimir Putin thought he had triumphed over his most formidable opponent. Until three courageous women - Alexei's mother, wife and daughter - took up his fight for freedom.
The wines and lines mums
Once only associated with glamorous A-listers, cocaine is now prevalent with the soccer-mum set - as likely to be imbibed at a school fundraiser as a nightclub. The Weekly looks inside this illegal, addictive, rising trend.
Jenny Liddle-Bob.Lucy McDonald.Sasha Green - Why don't you know their names?
Indigenous women are being murdered at frightening rates, their deaths often left uninvestigated and widely unreported. Here The Weekly meets families who are battling grief and desperate for solutions.
Growing happiness
Through drought flood and heartbreak, Jenny Jennr's sunflowers bloom with hope, sunshine and joy
"Thank God we make each other laugh"
A shared sense of humour has seen Aussie comedy couple Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammall conquer the world. But what does life look like when the cameras go down:
Winter baking with apples and pears
Celebrate the season of Australian apples and pears with these sweet bakes that will keep the midwinter blues away.
Budget dinner winners
Looking for some thrifty inspiration for weeknight dinners? Try our tasty line-up of low-cost recipes that are bound to please everyone at the table.
