I’ll Support a Progressive Black Woman VP, But Will White America?

With Joe Biden as the presumptive Democratic nominee for president, many are holding out on his promise that he’ll choose a female vice presidential nominee. There have been countless rumblings about who it will be and as of late, an outcry demanding that Black women get what’s owed to us: a Black female vice president. While Black women have been the saving grace of the Democratic party and this country, I wonder if the rest of America perceives us as such and acknowledges our power. 

As a 20-year-old Black woman who was raised in Macon, Georgia for 9 years, I never thought I’d see the day when someone who looked like me became governor of the state — and Stacey Abrams did not. I remember telling my peers at UNC-Chapel Hill that I would cry tears of joy if she secured the gubernatorial seat, knowing the transformative change she’d bring as the first Black female governor in the U.S. Abrams’ loss was due primarily to voter suppression enacted by now-Governor Brian Kemp and was a defining point in my conceptualization of U.S. politics. Along with my college friends, I was deeply disappointed. Unlike them, I was unsurprised because I understand that the mostly Republican Georgia populace extends far beyond the Black and blue epicenter that is Atlanta. 

The issue is not whether Black women are capable of or competent enough to serve in a vice presidential capacity. Rather, the problem is America’s political paradigm, a system that does not care about who actually deserves and is qualified to lead. We know the power we hold and we want better for this country and our communities. However, the rest of America has to want better for themselves — and time and time again, the United States refuses to trust, believe, and listen to Black women until it’s too late. Although I will support a progressive Black woman vice president, I believe the vast majority of white America would rather have someone more “palatable” who appeases their consciences like Biden. It’s how he became the nominee in the first place. 

The idea of a Black female vice president sounds wonderful in theory, but in practice, what does that actually mean? Throughout this campaign cycle, we’ve seen firsthand that Black womanhood doesn’t absolve you from a poor prosecutorial record nor does it mean that you’ll garner support from the community (re: Kamala Harris). If a Black woman were to secure the nomination, it should be an authentically progressive candidate who is plugged into our needs rather than one who criminalized parents for their child’s truancy.

Yet despite her egregious history, Amy Klobuchar, who dropped out of the presidential race months after Harris, is about to undergo vetting for the veep seat. This screams to me what I already knew: Klobuchar, or any white woman for that matter, will never face the backlash or be held equally accountable as a Black female nominee would. Lest we forget how much worse national media will treat a darker-skinned, full-bodied Black woman, and already has. Scrutinized for things like her credit card and student loan debt, Abrams lost a race within her state and has already been misgendered by President Trump, who has not even released his tax returns. Even after defending Biden’s denial of sexual assault allegations, the public still has not received word that Abrams will undergo vetting. Her grassroots legacy is at risk of being tarnished by working with this alleged rapist, and for what?

In addition to Biden’s poor judgment, white women have historically prioritized race over gender in voting. Following the leads of their white husbands, 52% of white women voted for Donald Trump and some will surely vote for him again. Historically, white women have been agents in upholding white supremacy and even female governors like Kay Ivey in Alabama sought to shut out access to safe reproductive healthcare for the marginalized. I’ll be unsurprised if white women turn a blind eye to the issues that a Black female vice president may bring to the forefront (ex. maternal mortality rates, mass incarceration, etc). Citing claims of her being too “divisive,” “unrelatable”, or not feeling “catered” to, they may very well vote red.

America wants Black women to continue to do the country’s arduous “dirty work” — whether it be fighting to expand voting rights, saving America and Doug Jones in Alabama, and being the reliable voting bloc — but they don’t want us to lead. We are more than ready and deserving, but in its current state, is America? Will America ever be ready? There is no such thing as perfect timing, but considering how much white fear dominates the current political sphere, I find it hard to believe that the rest of America will actually support a Black female vice president. I genuinely hope Biden & this country proves me wrong.