Kamala Devi Harris is an American lawyer and politician serving as the junior United States Senator from California since 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Harris is the second African American woman and the first Indian American to serve in the United States Senate.
She is the daughter of Indian mother from Chennai, Shyamala Gopalan Harris, a cancer researcher who passed away in 2009, and Jamaican father, Donald Harris, who teaches at Stanford University.
Taking to Twitter shortly after the announcement, Harris said she was “honored” to join Biden as nominee for vice president, and would “do what it takes to make him our Commander-in-Chief.”
.@JoeBiden can unify the American people because he's spent his life fighting for us. And as president, he'll build an America that lives up to our ideals.
I'm honored to join him as our party's nominee for Vice President, and do what it takes to make him our Commander-in-Chief.
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) August 11, 2020
This was welcomed by many Indian-american citizens as they believe it is a beginning of a positive change.
“This is a historical, transformational, and proud moment for all women. All women of colour, all Black women, and all South Asian women. Congratulations @kamalaharris on becoming the first Black woman and FIRST PERSON of Indian descent to compete on a major U.S. party’s presidential ticket. 🙌🏽 #representationmatters ” Wrote Priyanka Chopra in her social media.
5 Things To Know About Kamala Devi Harris
Kamala Harris grew up in Oakland. She graduated from Howard University and also holds a law degree from the University of California.
She became the district attorney of San Francisco in 2003.
In the year 2011, she was elected as Attorney General for California, the first woman and the first black American and Asian American to hold this position.
Harris was sworn in as a United States Senator from California in 2017, only the second African-American woman and first South Asian-American senator in history.
Her mother, Shyamala Gopalan, was born in Chennai and immigrated to the US to attend a doctoral program at UC Berkeley
The Chennai Connect
Her mother Shyamala Gopalan was born in Chennai. She went to college in Delhi and then later got her doctorate in California. Later, Shyamala became an activist and a breast-cancer researcher.
Though Kamala was grew in America as ‘Black-Americans’ she made periodic trips to Chennai both before and after her mother’s death in 2009.
Kamal’s grandfather P V Gopalan, is an Indian civil servant who had later served as an adviser to the Government of Zambia, settled down in Besant Nagar in Chennai after retirement.
The announcement was highly welcomed as many believe like Barack Obama, a mixed-race heritage will allow Harris to connect across identities and reach multiple audiences, and create a positive difference in a country like The US.
