“Justice Is On The Ballot”: Kamala Harris Talks to HBCU Journalists
posted by Keyona Smith | November 23, 2019 | In News“I’m running because I strongly believe that justice is on the ballot in this election,” said California senator and Howard alumna, Kamala Harris on the evening of October 8 during a candid, exclusive conference call with HBCU journalists discussing the reasons she is running for president and what type of change she plans to encourage.
Presidential candidate Harris highlighted key points of her campiagn during the call, including the belief that change needs fuel. One of the things she is working to combat is that here in America, the average percentage of people in prison is more than any other country in the world.
She added that students and graduates are drowning in debt, all while leaders in positions of power have access to huge loans and lobbyists, and then have free range to destroy our planet.
Sen. Harris also mentioned that HBCUs are performing exceptionally well, graduating engineers and skillfully equipped graduates, but somehow still battling the issue of endowments, receiving only $12 million on average in comparison to non-HBCU institutions on average receiving $23 million.
Sen. Harris focused the remainder of the conference call on creating a discussion with student leaders to employ her perspective on comments, her beliefs and overall concerns. Virgil Parker, Howard University, political reporter for 101 Magazine asked about skepticism surrounding Harris’s Blackness and authenticity. Harris said this is not the first time she has had to face this issue, but it gives her power to break barriers and hopefully expand people’s perspectives.
“I am clear about who I am. It’s important to not allow people to manipulate our sense of unity or try to divide us around the hues of who we are,” stated Sen. Harris.
After briefly mentioning the controversy surrounding NFL football player Colin Kaepernik, she admitted that America’s Achilles heel was race.
“In the name of people, I am prepared to take on a man who has not just abused his power and frankly the power of the president,” Sen. Harris said. “There is no limit to what we can do.
Harris stressed that this intense time requires focus from everyone and the continued work of student reporters.
“You are the voices that help inform in a way that is a trusted source of information and fact. What we saw happen in 2016 is going to happen again in 2020, and it is going to be fierce. And the role of Black journalists, and you all at HBCUs, is going to be so important to make sure that folks don’t get played,” said Sen. Harris. “And that we don’t get stirred up around somebody manipulating us with misinformation or to try and distract from the issues that are really at hand.”
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