Time and again it has been shown that Black women are the heart and soul of the Democratic Party. Democrats across the country agree that Black women are badly underrepresented in our nation’s leadership. Schiff and Porter are White; Lee is a Black woman. The right course is clear, isn’t it?
It would be, anyway, if the participants had the courage and principles to follow it: Schiff and Porter should step aside and reembrace their vital leadership roles in the House. And the rest of the state’s Democratic leaders should walk their talk and throw their clout behind Lee’s bid for the state’s full six-year seat in the Senate.
Why is electing a Black woman to the Senate in California a moral imperative?
Consider the numbers: Before becoming vice president in 2021, Kamala D. Harris was just the second Black woman ever to serve in the Senate, after Sen. Carol Moseley Braun (D-Ill.) in the 1990s. With Butler’s appointment, that’s three Black women in more than two centuries.
Further, Democrats’ tributes to Feinstein’s life and legacy illustrate their belief in the importance of representation of marginalized groups in the country’s top deliberative bodies. California Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis noted that Feinstein “broke marble ceilings for the rest of us” and “inspired women like me to leadership.” Former House speaker Nancy Pelosi — Feinstein’s fellow San Franciscan and herself a trailblazing woman in politics — said Feinstein’s “extraordinary career will continue to inspire countless young women and girls to pursue public service for generations to come.”
Another reason to choose Lee: Two-thirds of California residents identify as people of color. A partnership of Lee and Sen. Alex Padilla, who is Hispanic, would give powerful voice in Washington to their interests.
There’s something else, perhaps the most important thing, which is that she has proved to be an effective legislator who can work across the aisle on a variety of issues while maintaining her progressive values. She has worked with Republicans on matters of foreign policy and gun reform; her career is marked by unwavering and unapologetic support of police accountability, reparations, immigration reform and environmental justice — issues that are critical to Californians. Many politicians talk about courage, but Lee is the real deal.
California’s Democratic leaders have an opportunity to do more than pay lip service to their rhetoric around diversity. It wouldn’t hurt to remind them that Harris gave up one of California’s seats to serve the country. They need to know, and show, that forcing genuine equality isn’t easy or comfortable. It requires hard decisions, especially for White people who might have to disappoint their friends or sacrifice their egos and ambitions for the sake of the larger cause.
