The senator is basically telling a story about being seen, about being recognized and acknowledged

[bigtree]

Deepa Shivaram @deepa_shivaram 8m
“The senator is basically telling me a story about being seen, about being recognized and acknowledged.”

Brilliant piece by @helena_andrews — and this anecdote about @KamalaHarris underscores an important experience of growing up having to teach and explain your name to others.

WaPo: D.C.’s ‘Momference’ and sister circles celebrate black motherhood
{snip}

“I was just born into a conversation that was about the disparities, not only around research and treatment but how women of color are treated in the health-care system,” explains Harris, whose mother, Shyamala Gopalan, was a cancer researcher. From a very young age, Harris said, she knew that the issue of health-care inequality wasn’t just about the disparities, it was about dignity. That’s how she frames it.

Before we get started, Harris asks me how I pronounce my name. When I tell her, Huh-LAY-nuh, the senator kicks off our rapid-fire 10 minutes on the phone with a story about her goddaughter, whose name is also Helena and who pronounces it like I do. Harris took her on a trip to Helena, Mont., “to see all the things that pronounced her name correctly,” from the fire department to the library and the local coffee shop. The senator is basically telling me a story about being seen, about being recognized and acknowledged — and it’s one of the most important things I can remember from our conversation. I can’t recall whether my own doctor has asked how to pronounce my name...

Racism is a huge, snarling, near-insatiable beast. How can we slay it? I ask her. Most of the pregnant women I spoke to would rather opt out of a system that is so clearly not designed for them.

“Let’s keep speaking our truth because we cannot let people get away with failures of systems. It’s not just about ‘We’re being failed.’ This is about system failure — not just who is being failed but the system,” Harris says, shifting the burden from the mothers to the institutions.

(12 year-old Helena) had been interning at Kamala Harris’ campaign office all year. In addition to interviewing Kamala during the campaign, she also spoke to a crowd of a thousand people during election night...

[saidsimplesimon]

1. Kamala Harris is my second choice.

I would be delighted, and help out, if she wins the nomination.

[mcar]

2. Beautiful!