How Do I "Keep Kamala and Carry On-ala" Now?

I’ve been traveling around the East Coast for the past week watching the endings of the Harris-Walz campaign. It’s been intense and demanding, but I wouldn’t change anything about it. I can never completely describe what this campaign has been like, but I can show you some of it. 

Philadelphia, November 4th, 2024

The energy in Philly was incredible, and something like I haven't seen before. As many amazing guests that have been at previous rallies, the spread for Philly was pretty unbelievable. The Roots, Senator Bob Casey, Governor Josh Shapiro, Ricky Martin, Fat Joe, Oprah, Lady Gaga, Doug Emhoff, and finally Vice President Harris are quite the lineup for a political rally. The doors for the event opened at 4pm, and most people had been there since then. It took until 11:35 pm for Vice President Harris to come out and speak for her final rally, as she left Pittsburg around 9 pm. 

Bob Casey speaks to supporters at the rally. Photo courtesy of Callie Whicker.

Lady Gaga sings just before VP Harris comes out to address the nation and crowd. Photo courtesy of Callie Whicker.

Doug Emhoff introduces Oprah shortly before VP Harris speaks. Photo courtesy of Callie Whicker.

Oprah Winfrey talks to 10 first time voters on why they voted for Harris. Photo courtesy of Callie Whicker.

Oprah introduces VP Harris in a fiery speech. Photo courtesy of Callie Whicker.

Vice President Harris finishes her final rally for the campaign season. Photo courtesy of Callie Whicker.

Howard University, November 5th, 2024

I had showed up pretty late to this, but still wanted to stop by. The doors opened up at 9 pm, but I arrived at HU’s campus at about 10 pm. I was pumped for the election night rally and hopeful for Harris's presidential win. The crowd was electric, but many people were leaving as many were coming in. 

People waved American flags given out by the campaign, donned bright blue outfits, and had a fiery passion for their candidate. As states were called, with every blue state, flags shot up, waving as quickly as they could. 

And then we waited. And waited. And waited. The “red mirage” that we were expecting to last for a few hours never stopped. People were trickling out the whole night, but when North Carolina was called, waves of people left. Many stayed, hoping for Vice President Harris to address the people that had been waiting to see her for so long. Yet that time never came; where was the blue wave?

Many sobbed, realizing with impending doom that Donald J. Trump had most likely won the 2024 Presidential Election.  

The Harris-Walz campaign bus was at Howard, with many people posing for pictures. Photo courtesy of Callie Whicker.

Thousands wait for election rules at Howard University. Photo courtesy of Callie Whicker.

The moment when North Carolina was called for Donald Trump. Photo courtesy of Callie Whicker.

Howard University, November 6th, 2024

The next day, I headed to Howard University, with fear in my heart and camera in hand. The doors opened at 1pm, but I didn’t imagine that there would be as much of a crowd as last night. I strolled up to Howard at 3:30pm, 30 minutes before Vice President Harris was meant to speak, and had no issues finding a great spot to see.

The air was mournful. Small American flags were being given to audience members out of Amazon boxes, ironically after Bezos’ “endorsement” of Trump. I truly felt that the campaign was on its last legs. The momentum had stopped. 

I’ve never felt something more bittersweet than the aura of this concession speech. Whatever sorrow people felt was partially taken away by Vice President Harris’s comments about how proud she was of the movement created for a better future and better world. 

A teacher poses beside her Kamala Harris magazine, just after the concession speech Kamala Harris made. Photo courtesy of Callie Whicker.

Just outside Frederick Douglass Memorial Hall, where VP Harris was scheduled to give her concession speech. Photo courtesy of Callie Whicker.

A supporter waits for Vice President Harris to come out. Photo courtesy of Callie Whicker.

Vice President Harris in her concession speech. Photo courtesy of Callie Whicker.

My thoughts  

I fought so very hard for this campaign. I knocked on hundreds of doors, called thousands of voters, and got out the message, especially to rural voters. Not just for myself, but for everyone that I know and don’t know. For the trans kid just discovering their identity at 14, like I did. For the LGBTQ+ kid, scared to come out of the closet in their deep red state, like I did. For all of the disabled people that will be in shambles if the Affordable Care Act is repealed, just like I will be. For all of the immigrants, documented or not, terrified for their lives in this country. For all POC subject to systemic oppression in ways that I will never understand. For every woman who has died due to an abortion ban. 

No, Vice President Harris wasn’t my ideal pick. I think that the campaign ended up attempting to sway moderate voters way too much, rather than securing its own Gen-Z vote, Palestinian vote, and working toward a better message of populism. I believe that there should have been more talk about protecting the rights of my trans siblings and a genuine message of care for Palestinians, with more talk about that what the U.S. has been funding is not in the slightest bit patriotic. However, I put my own ego aside, and knew that her Presidency was the only way to get closer to the goals that I want to achieve politically. My favorite analogy for this reasoning is taking the bus. If you’re going somewhere, and the bus doesn’t drop you off exactly in front of the place you want to go, you’re not just going to walk away. You take the bus so you can get closer to where you want to be. That’s why I tried so hard for the campaign. I thought that the page would be turned on a dark chapter of history. 

I do find peace in knowing that I fought so hard, but don’t think that I will ever have complete closure. I wasn’t truly politically cognizant in 2016, but from the stories I’ve heard, and videos I’ve seen, 2024 is much worse. I don’t know how this nation will recover, or if it ever will. But we have to try. It’s all we have, and I’m clinging onto that, no matter how dark things get.