The Preamble to the Constitution stresses popular sovereignty as the primary system of governance for the nation. The founding fathers strategically laid out a democratic republic, where people have a say in what laws govern the nation through electing representatives that advocate for a particular agenda. These representatives, who ideally come from communities across the nation, utilize their position to “ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America,” by serving the needs of their communities best and giving power to their people. This is the backbone of an effective government.

To function as a democratic republic, representation matters; thus we cannot have an effective government when there is an absence of power in underserved and vulnerable communities, or when officials fail to recognize the needs of people that are struggling to survive. During a global pandemic and social upheaval, the duty of elected officials at all levels, from the president to city council members, is to work together to prioritize the safety and wellbeing of all members of society. When the health of the nation is at risk, the government must arrange medical care for all people, regardless of their backgrounds. Elected officials need to act quickly and intentionally, now more than ever, to address long-standing social issues that have plagued oppressed communities for generations, such as homelessness, poverty, and lack of educational and mental health resources. By divesting funds from certain institutions (i.e. military and the police force) and allocating those funds to community resources (housing, expansive education, and mental health care), we can move our communities towards thriving.

The Preamble establishes guidelines of an effective government through “Justice,” “domestic Tranquility,” and promoting “the general Welfare” of the people. Upon translating these guidelines today, we must ponder what is necessary for justice, peace and wellbeing in all of our communities. We cannot have an effective government when social unrest, due to atrocities committed against marginalised communities, is met with violent repression. The killing of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and many other Black folks pushed people to protest for the right to live safely as a Black person in the United States. It is the duty of everyone in positions of power to use their voice and act in solidarity to prevent such atrocities from occurring. The leaders in office need to make space for community voices and listen to the concerns of the people so that everyone can access justice, peace and wellbeing. Therefore, there is significant responsibility upon our leaders to radically redesign our policies and legislation towards the welfare of everyone. Our government needs officials that represent all of the diverse communities in America, because they can better adopt legislation that liberates and recognizes the rights of marginalized groups that made our nation what it is today. We cannot move forward without caring for the wellbeing of those most impacted by harmful systems. Our government will truly be effective when they shift how they deal with our most urgent concerns as a society.

Throughout the history of this nation, in the entirety of its governance, majority of members in government that represented this nation did not represent many marginalized communities that needed representation. This signifies that these communities did not access their concerns being attended or have their predominant issues being handled with in a safe and effective manner. As a result of many issues were swept under the rug, people in marginalized communities have been struggling for ages to have their concerns heard, these communities are lacking a lot of resources and care that needs to be dealt with and prioritzed by members that share and understand their walks of life.

With the admission of the new vice president, Kamala Harris, the first woman of color (of a Black and South Asian background), she marked an important milestone in history for communities of color. This brings hope and inspiration to many people in many communities because there has been such a lack of representation in history for communities of color. With the new administration in place, after a long 4 years of chaos, turmoil and unrest, Kamala Harris shone a light for successors in her role to come.