Half Jamaican and half Indian. A California native. Former California attorney general. Former San Francisco district attorney. Joe Biden’s running mate. Kamala Harris is the first woman of colour on a major party ticket. People have been calling for a progressive pick from Biden, and the only black woman in the US senate should be that pick, but what is she really about? Let’s take a look at her stance on five key issues.
THE POLICE
Much to the disappointment of her liberal voters, Harris does not want to defund the police, but rather calls for “reimagining how we do public safety in America.” She also put forward her support of the death penalty in 2014 and voted against separately investigating cases of police force brutality and requiring them to wear body cameras in 2015, two more decisions that angered progressives.
IMMIGRATION
One of Harris’ biggest policies is her view on immigration, which has become one of her most popular policies, winning praise from those who support immigration as she swore to offer a path to citizenship to the undocumented immigrants in the US. She also supports decriminalizing border crossings, and infuriated conservatives when she compared the Klu Klux Klan to ICE.
GUN CONTROL
Like most Democrats, Harris is in staunch support of gun control, calling for regulation of manufacturers, mandatory background checks and banning assault weapons. She also promised to enforce stricter gun control if she became president.
WOMEN’S RIGHTS
Harris strongly supported taxpayer funded abortions, arguing they would the lives of several lower income women. She also proposed a six month paid leave for personal or medical issues, double the time her more left wing contenders like Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren offered.
CLIMATE CHANGE
Harris co-sponsored the Green New Deal, which the conservatives refer to as ‘a socialist manifesto.’ It aims to overhaul the US economy to tackle climate change. More recently, she introduced a climate equity bill with fellow congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez that seeks to rate how environmental laws affect lower income communities.
So now that you’ve read what she stands for, what do you think? Is she the progressive revolutionary Democrats want so badly? Or simply a regular politician with too many expectations pinned on her?
Regardless, a woman of colour finally running for Vice-President on the most important ticket of the election is monumental, so congratulations to Kamala Harris and all the people she’s inspired along the way.
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