The Weight We Carry
Ranak Patel, Operations and Events Manager, Indian American Impact
We publicly hear all the names Vice President Kamala Devi Harris has been called by MAGA followers, from purposeful mispronunciation of her name, to the undermining of her intelligence, and the tearing apart of her identity as a Black and Indian woman.
I often see and think about all the forces wanting to weaken her, disrupt her power, waiting for her to slip up. All of them, opportunities to pounce.
VP Harris has the additional burden of addressing or blocking these attacks on a regular basis. I guarantee that while it’s at its peak due to her position, it comes inherent to being a strong woman of color. The fragile egos of others become unhinged the longer she stays steadfast in herself and in power.
To have such a pervading, intense level of scrutiny is a burden most of us will never know. I think of how Princess Diana, and maybe even more accurately the Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle, buckled at constant psychological warfare.
I also think about Hillary Clinton’s campaign and what a powerful force she was, but branded herself (or was told to brand herself) as “going high, when they go low”. Unfortunately, when there are manipulative forces at play, it isn’t enough to go high - manipulation and ego has to be outright rejected and denounced publicly. I love the way VP Harris says so much with her body language. She repeatedly shook her head at Trump’s remarks during their debate, smiled at the ridiculous claims made and repeated “that’s not true”. I see her as a warrior in these moments. I see myself fighting with her.
It’s important to take a step back and see how odds tend to be stacked against women, yet we must be resilient. We have to be, to survive in a world that doesn’t pay us the same as men, doesn’t give us autonomy over our bodies; allows government to decide what medical procedures are best for us, allows women to take on the burden of being unpaid caretakers and a plethora of other unmentioned issues.
When there has never been female representation in the highest post of the land to address these issues, of course inequity will persist. Women, unfortunately, take the largest burden of advocating for themselves this election cycle. Polls show that while many women find reproductive rights as one of the most pressing issues of our time, men do not see it that way.
It’s about time a strong woman of color leads this country into its feminine era of compassion and acknowledges our silent burdens on the world’s stage.
Today marks exactly one week from Election Day. Make the right choice, even if you’re not a woman, and know that your decision absolutely affects you and the future of Democracy!
Ranak Patel is a Maryland resident Operations and Events Manager at Indian American Impact.
