When Vice President Kamala Harris took the podium at her presidential campaign headquarters in Delaware this week, she was confident, comfortable in her own skin and stepping into her power.
It was a different Harris than the one I saw during her first run for president four years ago. Then, she was more cautious, guarded, unsure. She played it safe at a time when Democrats — terrified of the prospect of a second Trump presidency — took the safe bet, too: a White man in his seventies who looked like their best chance for victory.
This week, Harris owned her story, leaning into her identity as prosecutor to attack former president Donald Trump and making the case to the American people for why she is the leader for this moment.
“I took on perpetrators of all kinds, predators who abused women, fraudsters who ripped off consumers, cheaters who broke the rules for their own gain,” Harris told the crowd at headquarters to applause. “So, hear me when I say: I know Donald Trump’s type. And in this campaign, I will proudly — I will proudly put my record against his.”
As she approached and stepped away from the microphone, the Beyoncé rallying cry “Freedom” played — and I had a revelation: now the de facto Democratic nominee for president, Harris is having her own renaissance, her campaign suddenly powered by big Beyoncé energy.
That she has claimed “Freedom” to represent her as she makes her historic run for president is a choice, setting a tone that is a decided departure from who she has been as a candidate and vice president.
Harris’s evolution over the past three and a half years can be summarized as a playlist from the once-in-a-generation entertainer.
Her promising launch and disappointing exit — followed by her history-making vice presidency — could be described as Harris’ “Lemonade” era.
On that album, Beyoncé turns the pain of a marital affair into a journey of growth and healing. Harris was jilted by a skeptical electorate and the mainstream media that once proclaimed her the frontrunner before falling into the predictable racial and gendered stereotypes that ultimately helped to derail her campaign, Biden chose her to be his running mate and history was made.
After taking office and struggling to define herself for the national press and the American people, the vice president found her voice in 2022 once the Supreme Court ended federal protections for abortion . Suddenly, Harris was in her “Renaissance” era.
Like Beyoncé, Harris pushed boundaries, owned her lived experience and celebrated others. During the midterms, Harris became a happy warrior, unbothered by the critics and unburdened by what had been, her message resonating with millions of women voters along the way. (In past as prologue, Harris took a detour from the campaign trail for the “Renaissance” tour stop in Washington on August 6. Beyoncé invited her.)
What we are witnessing now is an upending of notions of what a president can look like, challenging our political imaginations . Beyoncé disrupted the country music industry earlier this year with “Cowboy Carter,” reclaiming the ultimate cultural signifier of “pure Americana.” In the same way, Harris — a child of immigrants who now finds herself a stone’s throw away from the Oval Office — is now declaring that the standard bearer of American democracy is a Black woman.
Beyoncé gave Harris permission to use “Freedom” on Monday just hours before Harris addressed the room full of staffers, who cheered at the opening notes, kicking off her campaign in earnest. The anthem also serves as armor, which Harris will likely need in the coming days against the continued racist and sexist attacks she has already faced.
Both Harris and Beyoncé have had their credentials questioned and their accomplishments overlooked in their trailblazing careers. Considering their shared experiences at the heights of their respective professions, “Freedom” is more than a song; the words are an affirmation.
Singin’, freedom
Freedom
Where are you?
‘Cause I need freedom, too
I break chains all by myself
Won’t let my freedom rot in hell
Hey! I’ma keep running
‘Cause a winner don’t quit on themselves
Since Sunday, Harris’ record fundraising and enthusiastic reception among Democrats — including party leaders , who have quickly gotten into formation — are proof of the excitement around her that has reset the 2024 contest. “Freedom” captures the current mood of the campaign, embodied in a freer Harris.
Freedom has already been Harris’ central theme on the campaign trail since 2022, as she has championed reproductive and voting rights , positioning herself as a fighter for freedom for the American people while asking them to vote to protect their freedoms.
It’s a song she and Democrats could be singing together in November.
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