I Knew In 2007 That Kamala Should Be President. Here’s Why.

This column is part of HuffPost’s “She the People” series, stories by Black women exploring Kamala Harris’ historic candidacy. To read more, visit our hub.

I met Kamala Harris in 2007, when she was the district attorney of San Francisco. A mutual friend asked that I have dinner with her while she was in Washington for a conference. He added, “She will be president one day, and you should know her.”

I had dinner with Harris, shared her commitment to many issues and have supported her ever since. I remembered that conversation as I heard the news that President Joe Biden was not standing for reelection and that he was endorsing his vice president to be the Democratic Party’s nominee for president.

I also remembered the excitement I felt in Chicago’s Grant Park the night Barack Obama was elected as the first Black president of the United States. During the Obama years, I saw so much hope from people all over the world for equality and the future of our democracy. We lost that hope more recently.

Now is the time to restore that hope. I unconditionally support Harris for president. As we reflect on the challenges that Black women have bravely confronted throughout modern history, including the indomitable spirit of Fannie Lou Hamer and the trailblazing leadership of Shirley Chisholm, it is clear that Kamala Harris stands as a beacon of hope and progress for all Americans. I know that she is qualified for the job.

Biden has demonstrated a steadfast commitment to empowering Black women, exemplified by his unwavering support for Harris and, in 2022, the historic nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court. This commitment is seen clearly in his endorsement of Harris to be the next president of the United