Women of my generation who, like Vice President Harris, are the eldest daughters of immigrant mothers, see in her an essential leader for this moment. (File Photo)
Less than a month ago, the political landscape in America shifted dramatically when Vice President Kamala Harris became the Democratic nominee for President. Especially during the Democratic National Convention (DNC) last week, “electrifying” and “joy” consistently described the campaign and the mood in the hall. For people like me, a first-generation immigrant born in India, watching Kamala Harris accept the nomination and anticipating her presidency is exciting and cautionary.
Women of my generation who, like Vice President Harris, are the eldest daughters of immigrant mothers, see in her an essential leader for this moment. She is what I call a No.1 immigrant daughter – responsible, hard-working and aware. In her convention remarks, describing her mother, “as the eldest child — I saw how the world would sometimes treat her,” she established her awareness of injustice and how it contributes to her commitment to fight “for the people”. Her historic potential to be the first woman, first Black woman, first Caribbean American and Asian American President is especially meaningful at a time when the question of who is American is more contentious than it has been in modern times.
Although the United States is no stranger to racial tension, fear of the “browning” of America, a term used to describe the march toward 2040, when White Americans will no longer be the majority, is at the root of the current divisions. Donald Trump’s Make America Great Again slogan translated to policies that were about fighting this diversification of America, from Muslim bans to border security measures. In his one term, he appointed three conservative Supreme Court justices, thus indirectly contributing to the decision in the 2023 Students for Fair Admissions vs. Harvard case. Plaintiffs argued that the university’s admissions policies discriminated based on race, and the Supreme Court agreed, creating ripple effects on schools, nonprofits, venture capital and foundations, making it harder for these sectors to offer programmes and services targeted at specific groups, including Indian Americans.
Indian Americans are the fastest-growing racial group in the United States and the largest segment of the Asian American population. Although they are touted as a political force and have higher incomes than other minority groups, not all are CEOs and bankers. Shyamala Gopalan, the Vice President’s mother had a modest middle-class lifestyle that made buying her own home a challenge. Today, while many Indians are here on H-1B visas, an increasing number are crossing the border and beginning precarious lives in the United States. And like other immigrants, they are equally subjected to racial discrimination, based on skin colour, religion, gender or caste.
Recognising these challenges in my community led me to start the nonprofit South Asian Youth Action nearly three decades ago. Since then, I have worked on immigrant inclusion in the US, in government and nonprofit organisations. During that time, under Democratic and Republican Presidents, I have observed how immigrants become a scapegoat for economic conditions, increases in crime and threats to national security. Still, it is painful to hear Vice President Harris, a child of immigrants, feel the need to say in her acceptance speech that she will be “a president for all Americans. You can always trust me to put country above party and self.” Her forceful assertion that “we can live up to our proud heritage as a nation of immigrants and reform our broken immigration system” is reminiscent of President Obama’s 2014 speech differentiating between families and felons, children and criminals. These statements are designed to reassure White people that Brown people are a threat that has to be minimised. In her speech, Vice President Harris said, “I refuse to play politics with our security” but called out Trump for his role in killing a Senate bill on border security earlier this year. But she, like all candidates before her, is playing politics with immigration.
Still, having Kamala Devi Harris at the top of the 2024 Democratic ticket is significant not just for America and the world, but also for our own home. My 18-year-old is one of the 41 million potential Gen Z voters who may decide this election and who says, “Kamala feels like how I see America in my future, sharing her cultural background while maintaining a deep love of country and a sense of caring for those around her.”
I see a future Harris presidency with open eyes and a clear understanding that because of the multitudes she contains, many of us see ourselves in her. That is no small thing. But I also see that because of who she is, she will be judged differently. That is the experience of immigrant women and other women of colour. Watching her emerge from backstage is a reminder to us to do the same.
The writer, New York City’s first Commissioner of Immigrant Affairs, is the author of People Like Us: The New Wave of Candidates Knocking at Democracy’s Door and the Substack No. 1 Immigrant Daughter
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
First uploaded on: 28-08-2024 at 11:06 IST
