Review: Dan Morain. “Kamala’s way. An American life”. Simon & Schuster, 2021.
“While I may be the first, I won’t be the last”.
“Kamala, you’ll be the first to do many things. Make sure you won’t be the last”. Powerful ancestor’s injunction made tonic of the personality’s here highlighted rise, I shout out the attentive biography, rich in facts and breathtaking research authored by the Californian journalist Dan Morain about Kamala Devi Harris, Former San Francisco’s District Attorney (2004–2011), California’s Attorney General (2011–2017) and U.S Democratic Senator (2017–2021) elected Vice President of the United States of America, first woman, Black person and of South Asian descent to do so last November and, since then, assiduous in the international news, Black-feminist and anti-racism fields in nuances which, admirable, but not exempt from Morain’s criticisms (I repeat Flávia Oliveira’s preface commentary to Brazilian’s edition on the author’s sensitivity, a cisgender white man, capturing them), revealed the contradictions, intelligence, pragmatism, meticulous political calculation, incisiveness, and an accurate sense of strategy to a Harris genealogically forged in activism, but without indiscriminate or thoughtless militancy in each, always chosen, area of (her) expertise.
“Kamala’s way. An American life” (Simon & Schuster, 2021) presents the personality that, between actions and omissions, aggressive defense, because it is robust, with dear chosen principles as an agenda — never indifferent to humanity and suffering of those considered alienated from political-electoral representation –, and strategic setbacks in issues whose presence and active voice were/are planned as well as her desire for victory, Harris, knowledgeable and perceptive of herself, her body (Black womanly) and power, alternates unapologetic ambition and restraint, solidarity, empathy, loyalty, audacity and boldness, not at all indulgent as if she knows how to succeed beyond limits — interposed and, at times, very rare, self-inflicted –. And she can. And will.
Between mistakes — although she does it little, considering her primacy for a methodical planning and (unduly) excessive caution –, accumulated successes and dividends, with benefits and harms along trajectory, Vice President Harris will live together for the next, perhaps long, years with the eyes and (loving, detrimental) looks of the world — including mine –, and hope of several equal/not equal ones — mine also, again — regarding next steps of Black and non-Black women’s future in the high Politics of nations.
“There’s a certain amount of courage that probably comes with the confidence in knowing that if you believe in something then you should know that if it’s worth fighting for, it’s a fight worth having, so have the courage to have that fight”.
