A Case Study of Kamala Harris (Essay Sample)

 A Case Study of Kamala Harris
Despite being in the 21st century, society still struggles with crucial aspects such as recognizing women based on their merit. Instead, women, and sometimes men, are judged solely on their sexual orientation and worse, even racial backgrounds. A good example is Kamala Harris, the Vice President of the United States. Being of color and the first female to ever become Vice President, Kamala went through mixed reactions from various citizens. The paper interlinks intersectionality’s impact on communication to Kamala Harris’ backstory as an example.
 Intersectionality was first coined by Kimberle Crenshaw 1989, an American civil rights advocate, to outline how various oppression regarding identity groupings such as gender, race, and socio-economic status (SES) overlap. The theory was later incorporated in describing the challenges women of color face in the job market (Atewolugun, 189). Crenshaw’s theory uprooted a significant wave of feminism that specifically fought for the rights of black women in leadership. Although there is no single and precise definition of intersectionality, it describes how race and gender groupings should not be homogenized
Intersectionality as a communication approach became popular when pushing for Kamala’s leadership attributes during the presidential candidacy campaign in 2021. However, the mainstream media associated Kamala’s win with her alliance with Biden and/or the voters’ hostility towards Donald Trump. They blatantly disregarded her leadership qualities which won her the nomination against other candidates. An example of such uncouth statements includes radio host Rush Limbaugh’s comment when he said that Kamala Harris might have “slept her way up the ladder” (Ayers, 79). Such communications from opinions and sentiments often accompany the sexualization of women aiming to display their inability to lead.