Opinion: I've been waiting 40 years to vote for Kamala Harris for president

I have been looking forward to the possibility of this moment since I was an 8-year-old Black girl in 1984, watching the Democratic National Convention and witnessing then-U.S. Rep. Geraldine Ferraro become the first woman vice presidential nominee of a major political party.

Just knowing, then, that it was a possibility for a woman to be on the threshold of becoming one of the most powerful leaders in the world made me think and dream bigger.

As I got older, I continued to be in awe of women’s firsts, in particular Black women's firsts. By high school, I had learned about Shirley Chisholm, who was not only the first Black woman in Congress, but also in 1972 became the first woman to seek a major party's presidential nomination.

Unbought and unbossed: Shirley Chisholm blazed multiple trails

I was keenly aware of the importance and significance of Erma Henderson , JoAnn Watson , Carol Mosley Braun, and a slowly but surely growing list of Black women ascending to the highest heights in their profession. In 2016 it appeared we were finally going to get a woman commander-in-chief of the United States in Hillary Clinton, a selection that would have been a game changer for all women. But alas, it was not yet meant to be.

I didn’t know, 40 years ago, that it would take us this long to again be on the precipice of another monumental first. In 2020, I was intentional about working with excitement and urgency to elect the Biden-Harris ticket. The possibility of then-U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris becoming the first Black woman vice president was extra motivation. And I was prepared to go to battle again during this election cycle.

But the political winds changed, and now, instead of being energized and excited for Harris to run and serve a second term as vice president, I am exhilarated by the ever-increasing possibility of Madame President Kamala Harris.

I don’t know if we will ever be able to measure the impact of having a qualified, beyond-capable, intelligent, no-nonsense, distinguished Black woman become leader of the free world.

There is a popular meme with emojis depicting all of the U.S. presidents . What will it mean to another 8-year-old Black girl on Nov. 6, 2024 to see it with a new edit — 43 white men, one Black man, two more white men, and then finally, finally, a woman — and not just a woman, but a Black woman?

LaToya A. Henry is owner and operator of LAH Strategies, a communications and public relations firm.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Opinion: I've been waiting 40 years to vote for Kamala Harris for president