I asked to host the diary today because my wonderful Mom taught me to look forward, not back, and this is the first anniversary of the day she got sick and I needed to heed her lesson.
On Friday, newpioneer wrote a splendid diary about why he supports Kamala Harris for President and if you missed it, click on the link and read it now.
This is why I do.
On December 30 last year, I was on a plane, traveling back home after Christmas with my family in California. It had been the first Christmas without my Mom and we did everything we could to recapture all the joy she had brought to us on every holiday, on every day — but especially on Christmas. (My brother and I had written and delivered eulogies for her at her memorial service in August. Though we had talked with our minister about the outlines of what we planned to say, neither of us had shared our drafts with each other before the service. It had not surprised either of us, though, that we had both begun and ended our tributes with Christmas memories.) By the time I was leaving California, I had caught a nasty cold and with hours of uncomfortable travel ahead of me, I bought a Sunday New York Times at the airport to help pass the time. And there I read Kamala Harris’s tribute to her late mother — and why her legacy had inspired her to fight for Medicare for All — and she and it captured my heart. Excerpts:
In 2008, our mother asked my sister, Maya, and me to meet her for lunch. When we arrived, our mother didn’t seem like herself. We wondered what was going on. Then she took a deep breath and reached out to us both across the table.
“I’ve been diagnosed with colon cancer,” she told us.
I know that many can relate to the emotions I felt in that moment. Even just reflecting back on it now fills me with dread. It was one of the worst days of my life.
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She got sick before the Affordable Care Act became law, back when it was still legal for health insurance companies to deny coverage for pre-existing conditions. I remember thanking God she had Medicare.
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I am so grateful my mother had Medicare, and I will fight for it to be guaranteed to all. I was among the first senators to sign on to the Medicare for All bill when it was introduced last year.
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I believe that health care should be a right, but the reality is that it is still a privilege in this country. We need that to change. When someone gets sick, there is already so much else to deal with: the physical pain for the patient, the emotional pain for the family. There is often a sense of desperation — of helplessness — as we grapple with the fear of the unknown. Medical procedures already have risks. Prescription drugs already have side effects. Financial anxiety should not be one of them.
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And though I miss her every day, I carry her with me wherever I go. I think of the battles she fought, the values she taught me, her commitment to improve health care for us all. There is no title or honor on earth I’ll treasure more than to say I am Shyamala Gopalan Harris’s daughter. As I continue the battle for a better health care system, I do so in her name.
The New York Times
When I read this, I was fewer than six months past the same experience and filled with the same bittersweet gratitude. The time between Memorial Day weekend and July 3, 2018, when my Mom died, at our home, holding my hand, is a horrific blur of ambulance trips to the hospital and sleepless nights and having to make decisions I never wanted to make, but which had been made somewhat easier because my Mom had left detailed instructions and appointed me to follow them. What I did not have to draw into this anxious awful time was worrying about how to pay for all those nights in the ICU and all those MRIs and all those specialists and nurses and doctors and drugs. And this is the thing: No one should.
Kamala Harris understands this, viscerally, from her personal experience. And on this issue — and so many more — she translates her experience and what she knows and believes into clear-eyed policies and the determination to enact them. For all of us.
And here’s what else:
My Mom was a teacher. She spent three decades bringing her effervescent joy in learning — her belief in the power of young minds — to two generations of second graders. She worked harder than most people I know. And she was always underpaid. On the day I walked into the first day of my first job as a lawyer, I already earned more than she did, with her two decades (then) of experience. I thought I deserved what I was being paid, but I knew she deserved more.
I’ve always been in awe of teachers. I credit my public school teachers with giving me the foundation for my success in college and graduate school — and for the joy I still feel when I read and write and learn something new.
In honor of my Mom, I funded a prize for excellence in education studies, named for her, at my alma mater. This wonderful young woman will receive her degree this morning, and with it the prize that means so much to me:
Crystal Farkaschek deserves a decent paycheck and the chance to practice the profession she loves. And I support Kamala Harris for President because she wants to make sure that Ms. Farkaschek gets these chances.
There are so many reasons to support Kamala Harris for President!
You can read her new and awesome policy page here.
The Common Themes: Equality. Democracy. Fairness. Justice. Brilliance. The Rule of Law. Empathy. Fierceness.
Not to mention what didn’t need to be said:
The return of dignity, eloquence, compassion and respect to the Oval Office. I could go on and on.
Politics ARE personal. And this person supports Kamala Harris for President of the United States wholeheartedly.
Today’s Round Up:
Let’s get involved!
If you’d like to volunteer to host one of our Kamala 2020 diaries, please leave your comment in the ”Calling all Volunteers” thread.
Even if you can’t committ to a weekly slot due to your busy schedules, guest bloggers are always welcomed!
Next week’s schedule, Please Volunteer, it really is a fun experience to tell your stories about why you support Kamala!
Mon. May 27 — newpioneer
Tues. May 28 — open
Wed. May 29 — Diana in NoVa 💛
Thurs. May 30 — Onomastic ❤️
Fri. May 31 — newpioneer
Sat. June 1 — open
Sun. June 2 — open
Let your voices be heard!
*Please remember this is a Kamala2020 group effort, & not a Daily Kos sponsored activity or endorsement.
Upcoming Events
May 28: @Lawrence O’Donnell will host a live MSNBC Town Hall special event with 2020 presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris on Tuesday, May 28, at 7 p.m. PT / 10 p.m. ET in Spartanburg, South Carolina.
May 29: Camp Kamala’s second volunteer’s training session! 8:00-8:30pm EDT
June 1: 2020 presidential hopefuls will take the stage at MoveOn's "Big Ideas Forum", more details to come.
June 8: Harris will be the keynote speaker at the Kennedy-Johnson-King luncheon. The convention will be held at Montgomery’s Renaissance Hotel.
June 8: Kamala Harris will be addressing the @SCNAACP at their Freedom Fund Dinner in Columbia SC. The banquet will be held at the Brookland Baptist conference center in West Columbia.
Jun 18: Kamala will hold a Reception in Midtown NYC! Check your email and RSVP. Limited tickets available starting at $100, more details closer to event.
June 26-27: The first debates will be held in Miami, Florida, and will be broadcast live on NBC, MSNBC and Telemundo.
July 30-31: The second debates will be held on July 30th and 31st in Detroit, Michigan, and will be broadcast live on CNN
Please remember to visit our community group page Kamala2020 and give us a follow! That way all our group efforts will appear in your stream; this makes it easy for everyone to keep up with our latest posts. As always, any who would like to join our group please leave us a comment and we’ll get your invitation right out to you!
While you’re here, don’t forget to visit Kamala’s Official Campaign Website and her Swag Shop for your favorite campaign gear! 😄
If you’re on Twitter, please follow @KamalaHarris and @SenKamalaHarris
on Instagram: @kamalaharris
and facebook: KamalaHarris
Group Guidelines
The Kamala2020 community group has been created to positively support Senator Kamala Harris, and not to engage in negativity towards other Democrats running in the 2020 primaries.
All should be made to feel welcomed here. What’s not welcomed here is petty bickering over any of our preferred candidates, or personal attacks on fellow Democrats. We’re not responsible for the actions of others who may offend, insult or attempt to sow discord and disunity — that’s on them.
What we are responsible for are our own words and actions — that’s 100% on us.
I’d like to ask all group members, as well as those dropping by who support or are interested in Kamala’s bid for the nomination, that we not respond to negativity from other campaign’s supporters with even more negativity. Let’s do better than our best and respond with respect, humor or try to hold our peace. Recipes and cat pics work too 😃
Doing no harm costs us nothing... pie-fights will cost us everything.
Good Sunday morning, Joyful Warriors! ❤️ Thank you, Mom. ❤️
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