10 new feminist icons you should definitely follow this year

WASHINGTON, DC – SEPTEMBER 27: U.S. Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA) listens during a Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing with professor Christine Blasey Ford, who has accused U.S. Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of a sexual assault in 1982, on Capitol Hill September 27, 2018 in Washington, DC. A professor at Palo Alto University and a research psychologist at the Stanford University School of Medicine, Ford has accused Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her during a party in 1982 when they were high school students in suburban Maryland. (Photo by Jim Bourg-Pool/Getty Images)

Kamala Harris

Next up, Kamala Harris, who recently confirmed she will be running in the 2020 presidential election. (And let me just add that she already has my vote.)

After Hillary Clinton’s defeat in the 2016 election, it often came up that Clinton used her “gender identity” too much in her campaign, often denoting that women should vote for her simply because she is a woman. While her political opponents were standing by the story that she should be veering further from that gender identification, other’s were just gearing up.

Once Donald Trump got elected, it seemed as though congress, politicians, and the citizens of the United States in general clung to these identities (whether they were gender, race, or religious identifies) more than ever. We’re now seeing more women (and women of different races, religions, and sexualities) in Congress than we ever have before. And Harris is clinging to these identifies as well. She stands proud to be the daughter of two immigrants, and she’s using this to her advantage, relating to those she wants to eventually represent.

We commended Hillary Clinton for using her platform as not only a strong candidate, but as a strong female candidate. And we’re celebrating Kamala Harris for doing the same.

"“I’ve been a proud mentor to many women seeking public office, because I believe we need more women at all levels of government. Women have an equal stake in our future and should have an equal voice in our politics. These are challenging times, but I believe getting more women to run for office is a big part of the solution.” – Kamala Harris"