Harris’s election as VP proves more is possible

By Molly Roberts
Posted 11/11/20

The first time I remember it happening, I was 10 years old and at summer camp. A group of boys told me I couldn’t play with them because I was a girl — this was after they figured out I …

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Harris’s election as VP proves more is possible

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The first time I remember it happening, I was 10 years old and at summer camp. A group of boys told me I couldn’t play with them because I was a girl — this was after they figured out I could throw a baseball farther than them, of course.

When I was in high school and earned top marks on the AP Biology exam, a male classmate told me it was “so weird” that I, a girl, scored higher than he did on a science test.

In college, I worked as a sports reporter covering high-profile University of Iowa sports where I was called “princess,” “darling,” “sweetheart,” “missy,” and so on by my colleagues. Sometimes I was touched inappropriately. I was told the press box at Kinnick Field was “no place for a woman”.

After college I worked as a bar manager, where I was frequently sexually harassed and, again, told that I wasn’t suited for the craft beer industry because of my gender.

As a woman, I have felt underrepresented, disadvantaged and underestimated at many times during my life. But on Saturday, Nov. 7, I got to see Kamala Harris, a woman, become the Vice President-elect of the United States.

The election was tumultuous and in the midst of the stress and anxiety, I lost sight of the significance of Harris’s presence on the Democratic ticket. I was unprepared for just how overwhelming it would feel to see a woman in the White House for the first time.

It’s a good problem to have, having to watch my step on account of all the broken glass on the floor. It’s never been so good to see a hole in the ceiling.

“While I may be the first woman in this office, I will not be the last because every little girl watching tonight sees that this is a country of possibilities,” Harris said on Saturday. “And to the children of our country, regardless of your gender, our country has sent you a clear message: Dream with ambition, lead with conviction and see yourselves in a way that others may not, simply because they’ve never seen it before. But know that we will applaud you every step of the way.”

Since the first United States Congress convened in 1789, 12,348 individuals have served as representatives, senators or in both capacities. Only 366 of these were women.

The 2018 midterms ushered in a record number of congresswomen. As of this month, there are 101 women serving in the House and 26 in the Senate. These women make up only 23.7% of Congress.

Before this year’s election, I would waver back and forth between feeling proud of the record number of congresswomen and feeling ashamed that, as a society, we seemed content with women making up less than a quarter of our government. I’m sure other women have felt it too — the desire for more representation in conflict with the fear of pushing our luck too far, being too confident, asking for too much.

But Kamala Harris’s election proves those fears to be irrelevant. She will hold the second-highest elected office in our country — women can and should chase our dreams and demand nothing less than we deserve.

In her speech on Saturday Harris acknowledged the scores of women who came before her, the women who have supported her, and the women who voted last week to put her in office. “I stand on their shoulders,” she said.

And I feel confident that Harris, too, will keep her shoulders clear, so that another woman can climb even higher.

Congratulations, MADAME Vice President-elect — Wow, doesn’t that feel good to say?