After reading “Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, and the Limits of Representation” by Keeanga-Yamahatta Taylor, “limits of representation” it was very insightful on how race and gender symbolize change in the American system. Joe Biden has exploited racial resentment for political gain and it is ironic that he chose Kamala Harris as his Vice President. Throughout history, black Americans have been oppressed and marginalized and more than half are living on or under the poverty line. When Barack Obama was president, he was talked about as the president for black Americans, giving them hope for change. Throughout his presidency 52 percent of African Americans said that Obama’s policies did not go far enough to improve their situation. Obama is living his life as the president of the United States. His social class is different from the working class and the poor. This ties into Kamala Harris’s vice presidency. Kamala is a millionaire and grew up that way. She is not educated on the struggles a poor black woman faces, so how could Kamala possibly create policies with Biden to help poor black women. The limits of representation start when a gender or race is celebrated for being picked into office. Class plays an important part. Just because Kamala is black, it does not mean she understands what it means to live a black woman’s life in America, because of her social class. Representation is more than a skin color or a gender.
Spring 2022
