(BPRW) Black PR Wire’s August Power Profiler: Vice President Kamala Harris

(Black PR Wire) Kamala D. Harris is the Vice President of the United States. She always fights for the people – from her barrier-breaking time as District Attorney of San Francisco and Attorney General of California, to proudly serving as a United States Senator and the Vice President.

On January 20, 2021, Kamala Harris was sworn in as Vice President – the first woman, the first Black American, and the first South Asian American to be elected to this position.  With withdrawal of President Joe Biden from the 2024 U.S. presidential election, Kamala Harris secured enough non-binding support from delegates to become the presumptive nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2024 presidential election.

As Vice President, she has worked to bring people together to advance opportunity, deliver for families, and protect fundamental freedoms across the country. She has led the fight for the freedom of women to make decisions about their own bodies, the freedom to live safe from gun violence, the freedom to vote, and the freedom to drink clean water and breathe clean air. While making history at home, she is also representing the nation abroad – embarking on more than a dozen foreign trips, traveling to more than 19 countries, and meeting with more than 150 world leaders to strengthen critical global alliances.

The Vice President has been a trusted partner to President Joe Biden as they work together to deliver monumental achievements that are lifechanging for millions of Americans. Together, they have invested in the economy to create a record number of jobs and keep unemployment low. Their work has led to more small business creation in a two-year period than any previous administration.  Kamala has spent her life fighting injustice. It’s a passion that was first inspired by her mother, Shyamala, an Indian-American immigrant, activist, and breast cancer researcher.

Growing up in Oakland, Kamala had a stroller-eye view of the Civil Rights movement. Through the example of courageous leaders like Thurgood Marshall, Constance Baker Motley, and Charles Hamilton Houston, Kamala learned the kind of character it requires to stand up to the powerful, and resolved to spend her life advocating for those who could not defend themselves.

After earning an undergraduate degree from Howard University and a law degree from the University of California, Hastings, she began her career in the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office. In 2003, Kamala became the District Attorney of the City and County of San Francisco. Among her achievements as District Attorney, Harris started a program that gives first-time drug offenders the chance to earn a high school diploma and find employment.

Having completed two terms as the District Attorney of San Francisco, Kamala was elected as the first African-American and first woman to serve as California’s Attorney General. In this role, she worked tirelessly to hold corporations accountable and protect the state’s most vulnerable people. Her success will continue, as she moves forward in her career endeavors.

Sources: https://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/vice-president-harris/; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamala_Harris