It’s a beautiful day on hilltop high for the students of Howard University. On Nov. 7, 2020, alumna Kamala Harris was officially projected as the vice president-elect of the 2020 presidential election alongside former Vice President and soon-to-be 46th President Joe Biden. The California native and state senator made history after four nerve-wracking days after Election Day, becoming the first woman, first Black woman and first South Asian woman elected to the vice presidency.
As the highest-ranking woman ever elected into a white male-dominated American government, Harris restores the hope of there being space for women in high positions — especially since Hillary Clinton’s close run for president in 2016. Upon news of the Democratic ticket winning the 2020 race, Harris shared a video of herself on the phone rejoicing with Biden about their victory via Instagram. “We did it. We did it, Joe,” the former district attorney said with a cheesy grin. “You’re going to be the next President of the United States.”
Although Harris may have furthered her education at University of California’s Hastings College of the Law, there’s no other alumni network more proud than Harris’ undergraduate alma mater, Howard University. Howard University shared a congratulatory post on its official Twitter account, tweeting, “Congratulations to President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, an ’86 graduate of The Howard University. HHHHHH—UUUUUUUUUUU !!!” Read on to hear how Howard University students and alumni are reacting to their fellow Bison’s historic accomplishment.
Howard University students are showing school spirit after Kamala Harris' VP win
There’s no reason for anyone to confuse Howard University with Harvard anymore. Unlike the previous presidents and vice presidents before her, Kamala Harris did not attend an Ivy League nor a predominately white institution. Harris is the first vice presidential elect to attend an HBCU (historically black colleges and universities).
Harris began her freshman year at Howard University in 1982. It was at Howard that Kamala Harris’ political identity would form. Her first campaign win happened on campus, as she had won a seat on the Liberal Arts Student Council, per the Los Angeles Times. During her time at Howard, Harris also attended protests against apartheid in South Africa. Thirty-four years after her graduation from the most prestigious HBCU in the country, Harris attributes her political accomplishments to her undergraduate learnings. “I reference often my days at Howard to help people understand they should not make assumptions about who black people are,” Harris told the publication in an interview.
Despite conflicting views of Harris’ policies, Howard Twitter raves over the monumental win of the Howard alumna. Believe it or not, the prideful tweets continue to fly as of this post. One proud Bison tweeted, “Lemme update my resume and increase the size of ‘Howard University’ under Education.” Another wrote, “Thank you Kamala Harris for inflating the value of my Howard University degree.” One user emphasized, “let me go put on my HOWARD UNIVERSITY hoodie and my HOWARD UNIVERSITY shorts with my HOWARD UNIVERSITY hat and drink my ILLUSTRIOUS water out of my HOWARD UNIVERSITY water bottle.”
If you thought Bison pride was “insufferable” before, you’ve seen nothing yet.
Kamala Harris' sorority sisters at Howard University are rejoicing
Outside of her political extracurricular activities, Kamala Harris made time to value sisterhood. You might’ve noticed the vice president elect’s affinity for pearls, and the pearls she often wears are symbolic of her membership in Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. Alpha Kappa Alpha (AKA for short) is the first Black Greek sorority established in 1908 on the campus of Howard University. It is the first of the nine fraternities and sororities that make up the Divine Nine.
Harris joined the sorority’s Alpha Chapter during her senior year in 1986. Since then, Harris has received boundless support from her AKA sorors, as well as her line sisters and neophytes. Upon news of her run for the presidency in 2019, Harris’ Alpha Chapter sisters led a fundraiser for her campaign that raised over $100,000, per the Atlanta Journal Constitution. After Harris’ historical win on Nov. 7, 2020, her Alpha Chapter neophytes flooded Twitter with excitement. One wrote, “A Black woman in office. A Howard graduate in office. A lady of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, ALPHA Chapter in office. This is history.” Just a day before, a spring 2018 initiate of Harris’ tweeted, “The first black Vice President, and the first female Vice President is a Howard University Alum who pledged as an Alpha Chapter AKA. that is all. Goodbye.”
Don’t be surprised if you hear multiple “Skee-wee” calls during the Inauguration in January — that’s just Kamala’s sisters.
Notable Howard University alumni congratulate Kamala Harris
Kamala Harris’ win has all of Howard University’s alumni ready to break out their gear to show off their Bison pride. If you didn’t know, Kamala Harris is not the only notable alumni from Howard University. Harris joins the list of Howard University’s finest grads, including actress Phylicia Rashad, Debbie Allen, Nick Cannon, and the late Chadwick Boseman.
In the midst of joy from current Howard students, a few of Howard’s celebrity alumni hopped on social media to indulge in the #BleedBlue reign. Travis Scott’s DJ Chase B shared his pride via Twitter: “HOWARD UNIVERSITY IN THE WHITE HOUSE.” Actress Taraji P. Henson, who graduated from the university in 1995, shared a photo of Harris on Instagram. The caption is exactly what would be expected from a Howard student: “#HowardsFinest #HOWARDUNIVERSITY STAND TF UP!!!! ?H U ? U ? KNOW!!! #HBCUPride.” While there’s already a bevy of tweets and posts in excitement of being an attendee of Howard University, there’s thousands of more to go until Harris’ inauguration in January 2021.
It’s only right to mention this one last thing: H-U!!! You Know!!!
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