Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris is gracing the cover of Elle Magazine’s November issue just one day before she will take the stage to debate Vice President Mike Pence.
During her interview as part of Elle’s “Women in Politics” series, Harris detailed her experience fighting for justice and how her optimism drives her to move forward.
“It’s about freedom, it’s about equality, it’s about dignity. When you achieve equality, and freedom, and fairness, it’s not because I grant it to you. It’s because you fought for it because it is your right,” Harris said.
She added, “This is not about benevolence or charity; it is about every human being’s God-given right. What do we collectively do to fight for that? That’s what justice represents to me—it’s about empowerment of the people.”
As November 3rd looms, vice presidential nominee @KamalaHarris is urging Americans to feel hopeful. “Optimism is the fuel driving every fight I’ve been in,” she tells @iSmashFizzle in ELLE’s November cover story. https://t.co/sVgody0D2T pic.twitter.com/W6ezIjv55F
— ELLE Magazine (US) (@ELLEmagazine) October 6, 2020
Elle’s Ashley C. Ford noted Harris visited a place called The Rainbow Sign, which was a community center in Berkeley, California, for Black families.
It was visited by leaders including Nina Simone, Ruby Dee, and Maya Angelou.
Mary Lewis, Harris’s godmother, was also the cofounder of the Black studies department at San Francisco State University.
Ford asked Harris how growing up around such strong women shaped Harris.
“There was no question that you had to dedicate yourself to fighting for justice on some level or another. That the measure of you is so much bigger than you; it’s the impact you have, it’s what you do in service to others,” Harris said.
She went on, “And that’s how I was raised. I was raised that it is not about charity and benevolence, it’s about your duty. No one’s going to congratulate you for it—it’s what you’re supposed to do.”
Harris revealed what motivates her to continue to fight for justice.
“Optimism is the fuel driving every fight I’ve been in,” Harris said.
She continued, “The motivation comes from believing in what can be unburdened by what has been.”
Pence and Harris will debate on Oct. 7 from 9 to 10:30 p.m. ET.
